Weltschmerz
by Vellichor29
Summary: In the world of Monster Hunter, hunting monsters has been around for hundreds of years. So why... why does it suddenly feel wrong? He's was a prodigy, he killed his first monster when he was seven, and he has been hunting ever since. Maybe he's just more mature now... or maybe it has something to do with a certain black scaled beast...
1. Chapter 1

Weltschmerz

Chapter 1 – Anfang:

Author's Note:

 **I've been wanting to write a monster hunter fanfiction since the trailers for the new game came out. But I had no idea what to write about... until now. The moment that I am writing this, there is seven days until Monster Hunter Generations comes out. I plan on posting this the day it comes out. As of this moment, I have no story board, just a general idea where I want to take this fanfiction. I may end up reworking this entire chapter... in any case, I hope you all are as excited for Generations as I am and I hope that you enjoy this chapter!**

 **UPDATE: This update was made the day before Generations comes out. I would just like to note that I am assuming you all have either: played a Monster Hunter game or are planning to play Generations. I will be using some terminology that may seem strange to the uninitiated. I am trying to keep it simple, but it will seem odd to those who have no idea what I'm talking about. This is taking place during the fourth generation, MH4u to be exact.**

XXX

Kill, carve, make new weapons and armor, hunt stronger monsters. A cycle that seems to infinitely repeat itself. _Again_ , a single hunter thought as he downed another Rathian. He quickly carved the beast and waited for the next one to appear.

The hunter's name is Zim. And he is a particularly accomplished hunter. When most were just starting the academy, he had already killed his first monster. Hunting monsters was just a hobby for several years until the hunter's guild caught wind of skill.

Zim was recruited to join the guild where he became a high rank hunter at the age of thirteen. He was well known in Loc Lac as the lone wolf. A hunter that could down the highly dangerous Deviljho by himself.

The guild had decided to move him to a new village in order to help newer hunters learn the ropes when he turned sixteen. It was why he was fighting low rank Rathians. He had no low rank gear and he was not permitted to use his high rank equipment.

He basically had to start from scratch, just like everyone else. Except he had nearly ten years of experience when many had just started doing simple gathering quests. He was just doing what the guild asked. He would help the newer hunters for a few years and then he could start right back where he left off.

A new, unclassified monster had appeared recently and a new village had opened up to hunt it. It was named the Gore Magala. It carried a special virus with it that could effect other monsters, making them highly dangerous.

It was why Zim was needed. The low rank hunters that had been flocking towards the challenge had no idea what they were getting themselves into. Zim was there to be an undercover guide to speed up their progress.

 _Gore Magala is weak to fire,_ Zim kept repeating to himself as he waited for the next Rathian. It would be his first time hunting a Magala along side the newer hunters. He usually hopped from group to group, attempting to help everyone.

But there was one group that he kept coming back to. And he wasn't sure why. It was made up of a brother and his younger sister as well as his girlfriend. The older brother insisted on being called Wolf and the younger sister Rose. Zim was sure it wasn't their real names, but he never bothered to ask. The other girl was named Eve.

They were no longer complete newbies. They had several large monster kills under their belts and they were preparing to hunt a Magala. Zim had faith in the rag tag team, they weren't amazing, but they got the job done.

 _Speaking of jobs to do..._ Zim mused as he watched the green-scaled, flying wyvern start to descend. He grabbed his trusty Lagiacrus long sword off of his back and prepared to attack the unaware beast. Since he was hunting alone, he was permitted to use his favored high rank long sword.

Zim ran towards a ledge the Rathian was landing near. Once he moved to the new village, he was told of a new hunting technique. He would jump off of ledges and cliffs, trying to land on the monster and knock it over.

He leapt off of the ledge and mounted the monster in midair. Using his hunting knife, he stabbed at the Rathian, quickly knocking her onto her side. Entering the long sword's signature stance, he effortlessly executed a spirit combo. He sliced her tail off, causing her to tumble away from him.

Not hesitating, he charged at her. He dodged a fire ball and ducked under a tail swipe. He brought his sword up and cut into her legs and underbelly. He back-stepped through the Rathian's signature poison tail swipe. He dashed forward, initiating another spirit combo on her legs.

She was once again knocked out of the air. Zim began cutting into her thick head plate, hoping to break her crown. He was hunting for an elusive Rathian plate. A difficult piece to carve, but it was easier to get since he cut her tail. _Snap!_ And broke her crown.

She roared in rage, but Zim did not falter in his combo. A single slice to her head finished her off. Her body sparked for a few seconds after the cut was made. It was a side effect of the long sword he used. The Rathian collapsed and Zim went to work carving the body. This was the last Rathian he had to kill, the quest was over.

He finished carving the beast and moved on to the tail, hoping for a plate. He did not get one. _Typical,_ he thought to himself. It was nearly impossible to carve one off of her, he would have to wait until the guild sent him his reward for completing the quest.

He began his long trek home. The hunt was at the Ancestral Steppe so he did not have far to go, but it would take a few hours. The guild would pick up the bodies, carve them for parts, and reward him based on what he had broken off of the monster.

Zim hoped cutting the tail would make a difference. _I should've capped them,_ Zim grumbled. He had already gone through the trouble of finding a Rathian plate years ago when making his favorite set of Rathian armor. Armor that he couldn't even use.

Once Zim arrived back at Val Harbor, a guild representative handed over a chest full of Rathian parts. Zim dug through the chest fervently, tossing most of it away. "A plate!" Zim exclaimed excitedly.

"You seem excited," a tall hunter remarked when he approached Zim. This was Wolf. He was twenty-two years old and was six foot eight, very tall for the average hunter. He wore Gypceros armor.

"Why shouldn't he be? How long have you been searching for that plate?" a female voice sounded. It was Rose, she was never far behind her brother. She was eighteen years old and was six feet tall. She wore battle armor, gemmed for attack up large.

Zim ignored the bickering duo and headed over to the smithy to forge himself his new weapon. "Hey, where did you get that long sword?" yet another woman asked. It was Eve. She was twenty years old and was actually not wearing any armor at the moment. She was six foot three, putting herself nearly halfway between the brother and sister in terms of height.

"Hey, that is a cool sword, where'd ya get it?" Wolf asked, stepping away from his argument with his sister.

 _Damn it,_ Zim thought to himself. Technically, no one was supposed to know that he was a highly skilled hunter. None of the new players accepted help from higher ranking players, even if they really needed it. That was why Zim had to start all over, it was a disguise.

The group knew that he was from Moga village and had been hunting longer than they had. But they assumed that "longer," just meant a year longer. The academy trained hunters until they turned eighteen, then they would be allowed to actually hunt monsters. Wolf had waited for his sister, but Eve had started later than most. They had no idea Zim was only sixteen.

Eve had been suspicious of Zim's true talents the moment they joined forces. Not that it really mattered to Zim. If he was caught and they refused help, he'd just go back to hunting more challenging monsters. Alone.

"It was made from a monster that had attacked my village a long time ago. They sent it to me when I asked for it," Zim shrugged off Eve's suspicions. None of them had ever hunted a Lagiacrus before, there was no way to explain it to them.

"So are we 'bout ready to hunt?" Wolf asked impatiently. In his mind, he had been born ready to fight the Magala.

"I just need to put on some armor. Should I use a bowgun for this one?" Eve asked, doing a little spin.

"I don't know, I'm just going to use my trusty greatsword!" Wolf grinned maniacally.

"Hmm, I'm thinking ranged too, then. Perhaps a bow would be better. I'll have to switch armor too..." Rose mused to herself.

Zim sighed as the smithy handed over his new weapon. He handed it back so it could be upgraded again and turned around to face his team. "Guys, we've never fought one of these before. I've been in contact with a few higher ranked hunters, and they all say that it moves rather erratically. I think a weapon that can guard might be for the best."

Zim remained in contact with the hunter's guild and several other high rank hunters. He was not the only one selected to go undercover to help the new hunters. Although most of the high rank hunters had moved on and gone back to high rank hunts.

"Greatsword can guard, I'm all set," Wolf shrugged off Zim's concerns.

"You think so? I guess I'll get a sword and shield..." Rose mumbled. She left to go and change weapons.

"If it moves erratically, you'll want me to put down status effects, right? Bowgun will be fine, as long as it's distracted with you all," Eve said. She then left to go and equip her armor and weapon.

"Don't you have a lance with fire element?" Zim asked Wolf. He took his new weapon back from the smithy and equipped it. He handed his long sword over to a nearby Palico to take back to his equipment box.

Palicos always unnerved Zim when they were around. One attached themselves to him immediately upon his arrival to the village. The cat-like creature was durable in battle, but Zim didn't need help. The Palico loitered around Zim's residence anyways.

"Why?" Wolf asked. Wolf loved using greatswords, but had a few other weapons at his disposal. One was a lance made from Rathian parts. Wolf didn't think much about using elemental damage because his favored weapon lacked an element. Not to mention greatswords dealt more raw damage than elemental or status, so Wolf never bothered.

"Because the Gore Magala is weak to fire. It might be a good idea to have a weapon with a shield and fire damage," Zim explained.

The two women came back fully equipped and ready for the hunt. "What weapon are you using, then?" Wolf asked angrily. He crossed his arms and glared at the shorter hunter.

"I'm using dual swords, I just got a nice pair of Rathian ones." Although Zim had mostly used long swords and greatswords, dual swords were starting to grow on him. The smithy in Loc Lac didn't know how to make dual swords, so he never had the chance to use them.

"Ha! You're not using a shield and you have fire damage. There's no need for me to have fire on my weapon," Wolf grinned.

"Your funeral," Zim responded nonchalantly. He double checked his items to make sure he had what he needed and went over to the counter to grab the quest. He waited for his companions to eat and grab the items they wanted to bring.

"Are you sure that you don't want a shield?" Rose asked as she stood next to the exit, prepared to disembark. "You did say it would be for the best..." Rose was the easiest of the three to get along with. While Eve was skeptical of Zim's actual talents and Wolf being an arrogant know-it-all, Rose actually listened to what Zim had to say. And she was shaping up to be a talented hunter, easily outclassing the other two in her group.

"Positive. My speed will keep me alive," Zim said. While dual swords didn't put out a lot of raw power or even elemental damage, they were fast. The damage stacked up quickly and they were mobile enough to dodge attacks and re-position for mounts.

The group of four walked out of the gathering hall to hunt a Gore Magala. Zim didn't know much about the beast. He only knew it was pure black and spread the dangerous frenzy virus.

XXX

 **So here's the first chapter of my first Monster Hunter fanfiction. Like I said, I only have a vague idea of where I want to take this. I just wanted to establish our main human characters. I would just like to note that Zim, our prodigal hunter, is a tri hunter, when there was no G rank. It may be awhile until a new chapter comes out, but when it does, I will have a story board ready. This is more of a trial chapter that I hope you all enjoyed. And remember, happy hunting!**


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter 2 – Fuchsteufelswild:

Author's Note:

 **It's so addicting... I've barely even had it for a week and I've already put over 50 hours worth of play time into Monster Hunter Generations. But, I still have time to sit down and write out a story board for this and finish my next chapter of Tedium (you'll see this after that's already been posted). I got a fairly good response from the first chapter and I'm excited for this one. Before you all get aneurysms from the chapter titles, it's German. All of my chapter titles, including the title of the story itself (Weltschmerz) is German. We left off right before the hunt, so let's see what happens to our hunters, shall we?**

XXX

 _Ancestral Steppe,_ Zim sighed. He and his team went over to the item box and selected what they wanted. Zim only picked up a map. Being a High Rank hunter, he wasn't use to being dropped off by the base camp and having all of these items to use for free.

"Not taking your free potions again, Zim?" Rose asked, concerned.

"Wolf is going to need the extra ones, since he refused to take something with a shield," Zim explained. He checked the map and left the base camp. He was still unfamiliar with the new maps, so he made use of the map he took.

"Where do you think he starts?" Eve asked, pulling up next to him. Wolf and Rose were still in the base camp, preparing for the battle.

Zim halted in his dashing and checked the map. "I don't know. I'll head down to area three, you head over to area two," Zim motioned to the map.

"Very well, signal when you find him," Eve said. It was dangerous for a bowgun user to go alone, but she figured she could just run from the Magala until back-up arrived. She ran towards area two, but Zim did not move.

He waited until she was gone and started to drink special potions he had brought with him. A demondrug for strength, and armorskin for defense, and a mega dash juice so he could fight without worrying about his stamina depleting. No one used mega dash juices at his team's current level, so he had to be careful to avoid awkward questions.

Once he had downed the potions, he moved on to area three, and sure enough, the Gore Magala was there. He dropped down low and signaled his team. As he waited for his team, he observed the large monster.

The Gore Magala was dragon-like in appearance, much like a Rathian. However, unlike the green wyvern, the Gore Magala walked on four legs. It was pure black from its head to the tip of its tail. Its wings were draped over its body much like a cape. And, surprisingly, it seemed to lack eyes.

This wasn't the first blind monster Zim had faced, but he wondered how it maneuvered. It didn't seem to have heat-sensing pits like the Gigginox. The monster seemed to know where it was going, it hadn't walked into the small river, nor had it ran into any walls.

It almost looked, peaceful. Wandering around, it didn't seem hostile to anyone. But that's not what the guild lady had said. She had said that the monster had attacked someone. Zim wasn't so sure. From a hunter's perspective, it looked as if the monsters were incredibly hostile, but sometimes...

Inevitably, the Gore Magala spotted Zim hiding in the tall grass and let out a roar in rage. _Where's my back-up?_ Zim cursed. He had signaled for them a few minutes ago, he hoped they were alright. The monsters always seemed to get upset when they saw hunters, they usually needed to be provoked for them to attack.

Zim sighed and stood from his crouching position. The Gore Magala charged at him, allowing Zim to get a better look at it. The Magala was sleek and looked aerodynamic. That meant that it will probably spend some time in the air.

Zim dodge rolled out of the way of the charging Magala. He unsheathed his dual swords and activated demon mode. It was a special aspect of the dual swords, it allowed him greater speed and attack while siphoning his stamina. But, thanks to the mega dash juice, he didn't need to worry about stamina.

Zim dashed around the monster, easily evading its clumsy strikes. He had no doubt that a High Rank Magala would be harder to deal with, but this one was too slow to keep up with Zim. Each time Zim's weapon cut into the Magala, there was a burst of blood and fire.

Monster anatomy was quite interesting. Most monster's scales were too tough for regular iron and steel weapons to penetrate, which was why weapons were often made from monster parts. Another interesting ability monsters seemed to have was high speed regeneration.

They healed wounds as fast as they were inflicted. But there was a limit to their regeneration, even though Zim could cleave the Magala's head in two and it could recover, it couldn't do it forever. Eventually, they would lose their ability to regenerate and would finally succumb to their injuries.

Zim dodged another swipe by the monster and re-positioned himself to attack the beast's tail. He let loose another flurry of attacks, eventually severing the tail. The monster screamed in agony and rolled away from the hunter.

Sometimes, enough damage could be dealt to a single area, such as the tail, to sever it, despite the beast's high speed regeneration still being intact. It was known as partial regeneration decomposition. Zim was not aware of the exact scientific reasons for why it happened for some monsters and not others, but he didn't have time to wonder as the monster let out another roar.

 _Rage mode,_ Zim grumbled. All monsters had a special ability to enter an enraged state that allowed them to keep fighting despite losing lots of stamina. They were faster, more aggressive, and hit harder. Zim needed to stay on his toes.

Zim noted that he had finally built up enough energy for archdemon mode. Archdemon mode was an extension of Demon mode, it allowed him to maintain the speed and ferocity of regular Demon mode plus longer combo durations without having to sacrifice stamina. The only problem is that the mode needed to be recharged by re-entering Demon mode every few minutes.

Zim dashed towards the Magala, but was forced to stop and cover his ears when the Magala roared again. This time strange purple horns extended from its head and the sky blackened. _This must be the frenzy state I've heard about,_ Zim realized.

The Magala gave off a strange gas that infected other creatures known as the frenzy virus. When it enters the frenzy state the virus gains more potency. The Gore Magala was at its most dangerous at this moment. Zim dashed forward none-the-less.

The monster reared back and black mist foamed at its mouth. Zim noticed the telegraph too late and was hit by a concentrated blast of the frenzy virus. Zim was blown across the area and landed on his back.

But his armor absorbed a great deal of the damage. Armor made from monsters had a similar high speed regeneration ability that allowed hunters to take more damage than humanly possible and allowed them to heal that damage at an accelerated rate. Although nowhere near the ability of the monsters that made the armor, it was better than nothing at all.

Zim grunted as he stood up. He checked himself, two broken ribs. "I wouldn't want to get hit by that," a voice said next to him. It was Wolf. Back-up finally arrived.

"Need some help?" Eve asked sarcastically. She loaded her bowgun and started firing at the Magala, deterring it from advancing.

"About damn time," Zim grumbled. He fumbled through his item pouch, ignoring the pain, and grabbed a potion. He downed it and felt his ribs crack back into place. The rest of his injuries vanished as well.

"Let's go!" Wolf growled and ran at the Magala. He rolled under the Magala's claw swipe and did an uppercut that caused the monster to topple over.

"Are you okay?" Rose asked as she and Zim charged the fallen Magala.

"Peachy," Zim growled. He swerved and took a detour. He started to leave the area, but turned at the last second to throw himself off of the small ledge. He struck out at the monster just as it was standing up. "I've mounted it!" Zim cried out to his comrades, causing them to back off.

They could not help him, he had to ride the monster alone. He held on tight as the Magala struggled. As it calmed down, he started to stab it with his knife, eventually toppling the monster again. He was thrown off, but sustained no damage from his fall. His comrades immediately laid into the felled beast.

The monster had been knocked out of its frenzy form from the fall. The sky cleared as Zim righted himself. He reactivated Demon mode and attacked the Magala. The group wailed on the beast for a few moments before it stood back up.

It gave a cry of pain as hideous scar appeared on its face. One that it could not heal. The Magala seemed to have enough of the fight and leapt into the air to run away. Zim detected the slightest limp in its movements.

The group took a moment to sharpen their weapons and heal before setting out again. "It's close to death. It's probably sleeping," Zim noted out loud.

"Where do you think it went? We forgot to paintball it," Eve said, catching up to the group. As a bowgun user, she was at the back and allowed her friends to tank the damage.

"Likely area five, that's where all flying wyverns sleep," Zim said. When a monster was close to death it would run to a safe area to sleep and start to recover energy. The more energy a monster had, the longer it could sustain its high speed regeneration.

The group traveled through several areas before finally climbing up towards area five. Area five was a perilously perched rock with a large nest in the center. The Gore Magala had fallen asleep. "Does anyone have bombs?" Zim asked.

A popular hunting strategy was to put the monster to sleep, or wait until it fell asleep, and lay down bombs. The bombs did more damage to the sleeping monster. "You brought bombs?" Rose asked.

"Of course, I had figured Eve would be putting him to sleep and we would be bombing him. But it didn't exactly work out like I had thought."

"I brought bombs," Eve said. She and Zim planted the barrels filled with explosives next to the monster's head to maximize damage. "Sorry for not putting it to sleep sooner," Eve apologized.

"Shh," Zim urged. He set down a much smaller bomb and lit the fuse. He ran from the oncoming explosion. The Magala screamed in pain as the explosion woke it up.

"Charge!" Wolf cried as the group took action. Eve stayed at the back and sniped the monster while Wolf and his sister attacked the back legs.

Zim leapt over the edge of the nest, attacking from above. Their combined attack was too much for the Magala to handle. Its high speed regeneration gave out and the damage the group started to inflect became permanent.

Large gashes opened up all over the beast. Its wings shattered and its claws broke. The Magala continued to scream in pain. Wolf and Rose pulled back just as Zim dealt the final blow. A single chop to its neck put the monster out of its misery.

Wolf grinned as he set about carving the monster's corpse. Rose smiled to herself as she too set about carving. Eve approached the monster cautiously before carving next to Wolf. Zim was the only one not carving the monster.

He couldn't get it out of his mind. Although the Magala has no eyes, its face was surprisingly emotive. At least to those paying attention. And Zim had seen a look of intense... _fear_ on its face as it died.

Perhaps he was just losing his mind. But the Magala's face, or what was left of it, was now in a perpetual state of fear. Maybe he was the only one who could see it, or perhaps he was the only one who cared.

Normally, he ignored the monster's facial expression and their screams of pain, but the Magala was unlike anything he had ever encountered. Its screams sounded so... human. The sound echoed through Zim's head, freezing him in place.

"Are you alright, Zim?" Rose asked after she had finished carving. She had noticed that Zim hadn't moved.

"I'm fine," Zim said, snapping out of his stupor. He approached the dead monster and kneeled to carve.

"Are you going to have enough time?" Wolf asked, not really concerned. If Zim didn't want to carve, he didn't care. Each hunter was given a certain number of carves off of a monster and a minute to get them before they were pulled out of the field. The rest of the monster was given to the guild to dissect.

The hunter would then be rewarded with monster parts and other items depending on how well they did on the hunt. Plus a hefty sum of zenny, the currency of the guild. Zim was barely able to finish in time before a large balloon descended from the sky. The hunters piled on and took off, heading towards Val Harbor. The guild would collect the body later.

XXX

Back at Val Harbor, the group was greeted by four large chests stuffed full of quest rewards. Each of them rifled through the chest with their names on it. Most of them received the same rewards, plus a few armor spheres that they could use to upgrade their armor.

Wolf looked like a kid in a candy store as he searched through the chest. "Come on, Eve, let's go check out what these can be used for!" Wolf grabbed Eve by her arm and dragged her out of the gathering hall and towards the main part of town.

"Are you going to go with them?" Zim asked Rose, who had stayed behind to sort her new items. Zim narrowed his eyes. She was usually not far from her brother, her staying behind was strange.

"Nah, I think I'm going to do a solo quest. I think I'm getting the hang of this hunting business," Rose said. Out of the four of them, Rose was the newest to hunting. The Magala was only her fourth large monster quest.

Zim wanted to point out that she was not ready for a solo quest. During the Magala hunt, she had taken the most damage and dealt the least in return. But he held his tongue and instead asked, "What do you plan on hunting?"

"A Great Jaggi. I'm thinking about making its armor," she said.

 _A Great Jaggi barely qualifies as a large monster, I don't need to go with her,_ Zim rationed. A Great Jaggi was often the first monster new hunters faced, she didn't need help. "Alright then," Zim said. He began to walk out of the gathering hall.

"Wait, aren't you going to offer to go with me?" she called out after him. She sounded upset.

"You don't need me. I think I'm going to do a solo quest as well..." Zim mused as he left the gathering hall.

Zim went to his humble abode and walked over to his storage box. He equipped his favorite Rathian set and his Lagiacrus long sword and went over to the quest counter. He flipped through the quest list and selected a simple harvest tour at the Ancestral Steppe.

There had to be a reason why the Magala was at the Steppe, and Zim intended to find out. The monster's screams still echoed in his head. Hopefully this quest will put the monster to rest for good. Whether the monster was just passing through, or just hunting certain prey, or just trying to spread its virus, there was a reason.

XXX

 **Next chapter down. The Magala hunt I described was an actual hunt that I went on when I was playing 4 ultimate. I had joined a room of lower ranked hunters and they asked for help. "Sure, why not," I had said. What they didn't tell me was that they were going to go AFK and let me kill the damn thing myself. They showed up at the last minute to see it limp off. Whatever, I was a G-rank hunter so it wasn't like I actually got hurt like Zim did. Anyways, stay tuned until next time to see what Zim discovers at the Steppe pertaining to the Magala.**


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter 3 - Fingerspitzengefühl:

Author's Note:

 **This took longer than expected. First off, I've been playing a lot of Generations, and it has been taking up the time I would normally devote to typing (sorry). Secondly, after doing some research, I had to rewrite a part of this chapter. Anyways, enjoy the chapter!**

XXX

Zim arrived at the Steppe where he had fought the Gore Magala. He had no doubt that the carcass was already gone. But the corpse wasn't what he hoped to find.

So little was known about the Gore Magala. The guild knew how it defended itself, they knew what it was weak to, and they knew how to kill it. But that was it. No one has discovered the purpose of the frenzy virus, or the natural habitat of the Magala, or even where they came from.

Although several new monster species had been identified over the past few years, the Magala was different. They had started to show up after all of the other monsters and new locations to hunt had already been documented and researched thoroughly.

The Magala just showed up one day. The latest theory was that they had just migrated from somewhere beyond the guild's control. It was rare something like that happened, but there have been documented elder dragons doing something similar.

Since the Magalas had shown up, several have been killed. And yet, not a single research team has been able to make any meaningful discoveries. Not even how to classify the monsters. The only thing that had been learned was that the frenzy virus was extremely potent in the Magala's blood.

The puzzling thing about the Magalas seemed to be their habitat. They have been found mostly in tropic climates, but there have been evidence of them passing over extremes. Monsters that had contracted the frenzy virus had been found in both the Frozen Seaway and the Volcanic Hollow.

Zim began his search in the nesting area. If there was anything to be found, it should be where the wyvern slept. He made his way through the different areas, climbing up towards area five. The climb wasn't hard, it was just annoying.

Area five wasn't just the area flying wyverns slept, it was also the area where they nested. There was a permanent dip in the area that served as the actual nest. There were sticks piled haphazardly in the dip along with the broken shells of wyvern eggs.

Breeding season had ended several months ago, all of the eggs that survived had already hatched. _But perhaps the Magala has a different breeding season,_ Zim reasoned. Jaggi, small raptor-like bird-wyverns, were bouncing around the nest. As if there was still something there.

Zim ignored the small monsters, they posed no threat to him, and approached the nest itself. He kneeled down to dig around the nest. All the while, Jaggi danced around him, trying to decide if they wanted to attack.

Zim dug around the nest and found... nothing. There was nothing here except broken wyvern eggs. There was no evidence that the Magala was here to breed. Zim stood and glared at one of the Jaggi that came too close. He was so sure that the Magala was here to breed.

Now that he thought about it, there has been no evidence of any Magala eggs anywhere. Not a single hunter has stumbled upon a mating pair. In fact, no one has sighted more than one at a time. _Perhaps they gave birth to live young,_ Zim thought.

It was rare for monsters to give live birth, the only one Zim could actually think of was the Zinogre. On the other hand, perhaps the Magala was just passing through.

Zim thought back to the quest description. Every quest a hunter accepted was registered by someone who needed help, and had the money to pay the hunters. That someone usually gave a brief description of what had happened to them and what they wanted the hunter to do.

The quest had said that the person was attacked by the Magala and he wanted it killed. The quest was registered three days ago, and the person was attacked two days before he registered the quest. Which meant the Magala had been at the Ancestral Steppe for at least five days.

There was a high chance that the Magala had been here before it encountered the man who registered the quest. A monster that stayed in one place for at least five days was not "passing through." Which meant it was either trying to establish this area as its hunting grounds or it was here to breed.

And Zim could safely say that the Magala was not here to breed. If it was here to claim this territory as its own, that would explain why the Magala was so aggressive. _I guess that mystery is solved,_ Zim thought.

He was a bit disappointed that the Magala didn't have some ulterior motive for being here. There was so little the guild knew about the Magalas, he hoped he would make a scientific breakthrough.

Zim made his way down through area six and eight before turning right to go through area four and two. There was a bug catching spot in area two that had a good chance of finding thunderbugs. Thunderbugs were used in making shock traps and Zim had a feeling he would want one for his next quest.

The walk was uneventful. Zim mostly ignored the small monsters and large insects that moved around him. He was lost in thought. He couldn't help his mind wandering back to the Magala. Once again the monster's dying screams echoed through his mind.

He had hoped the monster was innocent. He had been suspecting for years now that the claims of people being attacked by monsters were largely fabricated. Most monsters would not attack unless provoked.

Which meant that instead of running in the opposite direction the moment they saw the monster, these people who claimed to have been attacked actually thought they could fight it. Which meant, in Zim's book, they probably deserved to be attacked.

Zim made it to area two without running into anything dangerous. He went over to the bug gathering spot and sure enough, there were lots of different insects. He barely registered the Jaggi bouncing around him. He pulled out his bug net and swung downwards.

 _Garbage,_ he thought when he realized what he had caught. He kept swinging and failed to catch a single thunderbug each time. Eventually the bugs fled the area, hoping to avoid capture. Zim sighed, "I guess I'll just buy a trap if I really need it..."

He went through his item pouch and released all of the useless bugs he had caught. There was no point taking up space with items he didn't need. Suddenly, he noticed something was wrong. His hunter training kicked in.

He had been distracted by the task at hand, but now that he was aware of his surroundings, he noticed that the endless chirping Jaggi gave off had halted. He looked around and noticed that they had retreated and fled to a far corner in the area to hide.

The smaller monsters retreating could mean only one thing. There was a larger monster nearby. Zim readied himself as the monster rounded the corner, coming from area four. His eyes narrowed when he recognized the monster.

It was a Congalala. And not a normal one. It's fur was darker in some places and its eyes were red. It had been infected by the frenzy virus. And it had progressed quite far.

Although little was known about the virus, it was easy to tell when a monster was infected. The guild also knew that infected monsters did not live long. Zim drew his weapon, it was more humane to put the monsters down before the virus got them.

The frenzy virus made the monsters faster and stronger. They seemed to be in an almost constant state of rage, which made fighting them difficult. But Zim was a seasoned hunter, and a Congalala wasn't exactly the most difficult monster to deal with.

The ape-like creature stood on his hind legs and prepared to let out a roar. But instead of a fearsome sound that caused hunters to cover their ears, it let out a strange choking sound. Zim stared at the beast in confusion as it continued to choke and cough up blood.

Zim stayed where he was to observe from a safe distance. Suddenly, something burst from the Congalala's chest, splattering blood all over the ground. The Congalala fell onto its back, never to rise again.

 _What the hell just happened?_ Zim thought. The creature that had burst from the Congalala's chest was covered in blood and struggling to stand up. Zim approached it slowly, his weapon still drawn.

The Jaggi only saw that the large monster was dead. They rushed towards the creature, happy to see an easy target. They surrounded the still struggling monster and started to nip at it, trying to determine what it was and if it was safe to eat.

One of the Jaggi jumped back and prepared to leap forward. They had clearly decided that whatever it was, it was safe to eat. Despite having burst from the chest of a larger monster and was currently covered with blood.

The Jaggi leapt forward, ready to tackle the creature and bite into its sensitive neck. Zim interrupted the small raptor by cleaving off its head in one clean stroke. The head went flying as its body collapsed to the ground, splattering even more blood onto the creature.

The Jaggi chirped in rage and attempted to attack Zim. One of them circled around the creature to flank Zim, the other two attacked him directly. Big mistake.

Zim's first strike beheaded the nearest bird-wyvern and his second sliced the other one in two vertically. The small Jaggi had weak high speed regeneration and couldn't keep up with Zim's high powered long sword.

Zim rolled to the side to dodge the final Jaggi's attack. Not that he needed to dodge, the small Jaggi wouldn't even be able to put a dent in his armor, but it allowed him to reposition himself for the final strike.

Zim thrust his sword forward, impaling the Jaggi through its side and electrocuting it from the inside. He freed his sword from the dead monster and let the corpse drop to the ground. It was a short fight, but it got Zim's blood pumping.

Zim watched in fascination as the strange creature suddenly spread its wings and stood on its hind legs, sending blood everywhere. Droplets rained down onto Zim as he got a better look at the creature.

It was a Gore Magala. A baby Gore Magala burst from the chest of an infected Congalala. "What the hell?" Zim muttered out loud. He crouched down to get closer to the little Magala. Thankfully his first instinct wasn't to kill it.

Although he couldn't say that he didn't consider killing it. He was a hunter. His job was to kill monsters, and killing them when they were young saved him time later. But he couldn't do it.

It looked completely harmless, even if he knew full well what it would grow into. At the moment, it was even smaller than the Jaggi. Its scales were pale, but its outer shell was starting to harden and become black. Its wings were completely see-through, it could not fly. And it was still struggling to stand up.

Zim sighed as he sheathed his weapon. He could not kill the little Magala. He was hesitant on leaving the Magala alone, but judging by its small size and inability to fly, it would not live long alone. It was probably rare for a Magala to reach adulthood.

He reached out to touch the Magala, trying to gauge how aggressive it was. To his surprise, it did not flinch from his touch. It actually leaned into his hand and allowed him to rub its head, much like one would rub a Palico.

Zim stood up and walked over to the dead Congalala. _Did the female lay the egg inside the Congalala? Or did something else happen?_ Zim wondered. Zim looked into the exit wound to see the Congalala's internal organs had been smashed against the monster's own spine.

It would seem as if the little Magala was nothing more than a parasite, feeding off of the host until it was large enough to burst free. Zim wondered if the Magala would need to find a new host.

It looked as if the Congalala was still in good enough shape to carve. Even though Zim didn't need the parts, he could always sell them. He crouched and began to carve.

Once he was finished, he looked over at the little Magala. It had figured out how to walk and was starting to wander around the area. Its scales had just about finished darkening, but its wings were still see-through. It probably wouldn't be able to fly until it matured.

Zim decided that the Magala would be fine on its own. He moved to leave the area, but was halted when something landed on his back. It was the Magala. It had launched itself at Zim and knocked him over.

He grumbled and looked over his shoulder to see the little Magala attached to his back. The Magala's claws had managed to find a grip, but were unable to pierce even the weakest part of the Rathian armor.

Zim managed to stand up and the Magala kept its grip. It wasn't like the Magala was heavy, but it did pull down Zim's torso armor, making it uncomfortable to wear. Zim struggled, trying to knock the Magala loose, but it held on.

Exasperated, Zim decided to ignore the Magala for now. He made his way back through area one and into the base camp. He went over to the item box and grabbed the paw pass ticket that, when delivered, signaled the guild to pick him up.

A new idea popped into his head before he delivered the ticket. He currently had a baby Magala _clinging to his back_. He had seen it burst from the chest of another monster. Perhaps he _should_ take the Magala back with him, to study.

But there was one problem. The guild had a no tolerance policy when it came to monsters. They were not allowed anywhere near the town, harmless or otherwise. It made sense, though. The guild's job was to protect others from monsters, and no monster was without its hazards.

The guild still sanctioned capture quests, but only because the monsters were going to end up in the arena. And very few monsters actually win a match in the arena.

But Zim knew of a sect of the guild called the Wycademy. The Wycademy was responsible for researching the monsters the guild hunts. Their research gave the hunters an edge against the monsters. The Wycademy haven't been able to work with live monsters due to the guild's no tolerance policy.

If Zim could just get the Magala to the Wycademy... Zim sighed. He would have to sneak the Magala into Val Harbor.

If he was back at his home village, they wouldn't care if he brought the Magala into the small seaport. The guild was not in direct control of the village, but Val Harbor was a different story. The guild's presence could be felt everywhere in the town, which made bringing the Magala into Val Harbor dangerous. For both of them.

The Magala didn't look like it wanted to move from his back. In a way, he had become its new host. Zim delivered the ticket and set to work fashioning a suitable cover for the Magala. He was eventually picked up by the guild and taken back to Val Harbor. They didn't notice a thing.

XXX

Zim felt incredibly awkward walking back into town. He had managed to grab the blanket off of the base camp bed and wrap it around himself as if he was wearing a cape. It looked strange and the fact that the weight of the Magala was forcing him to bend backwards did not help.

He made a beeline to his home. On the flight back to the town, he realized something incredibly important. He had no clue where the Wycademy was. He figured he could drop the Magala off at his house and then inquire about the academy.

He passed by Wolf, Rose, and Eve all sitting around a table, surrounded by rookie hunters. The rookies were all asking questions about the group's most recent hunt, the Magala. Although the flurry of questions came in quickly, and Rose looked like she was going to pass out from the large crowd, the trio did their best to recount the tale.

Wolf seemed the most at home. He soaked up the attention and used the spotlight to weave a fantastic tale that was mostly fabricated. Eve sat next to him, smiling and not saying a word. Rose was clearly too scared of the crowd to object. They left out the part where they left Zim to fight the Magala himself.

Rose looked over and spotted Zim walking towards his house. Zim was walking fast, but not running. That would be suspicious. "Hey, Zim!" Rose called out.

 _I do_ _not_ _want to deal with this right now,_ Zim grumbled under his breath. He turned around and walked towards the table. He couldn't get too close due to the density of rookies that surrounded them. "What?" he asked.

"Oh, that's right. Zim was there too," Wolf said, interrupting his story.

"There too is an understatement," Eve snorted, "He practically killed the monster by himself."

"He went in alone and got blasted! We got there just in time to help," Wolf objected.

"You got blasted too! Even after we showed up, Zim dealt the majority of the damage to the monster, plus he struck the killing blow," Rose argued. The crowd looked between the three of them and realized that Wolf had been feeding them a false story.

"Now... guys... girls, you know that I played a huge part too..." Wolf raised his hands in defense. The crowd booed and turned around to face Zim.

Zim felt each and every gaze on him, causing him to start to sweat. He was a solo hunter, he was not used to this much attention. The Magala on his back did not help. The crowd started to call out more questions, "How big was it?", "What did it look like?", and "What weapon did you use?" all bombarded him at once.

"I already answered all of those questions," Wolf complained.

Eve slapped him on the arm, "They want to hear from a reliable source. You told them the monster looked like a giant cockroach."

"It does!" Wolf argued. It only earned him another slap on the arm.

Zim looked around the crowd to see that he had their full attention. "Uh..." Zim wasn't sure what to say. The crowd leaned forward, believing that he was going to say something important. "I really have to be somewhere... sorry, I guess. Maybe another time!" he called out as he bolted away from the crowd.

"Is it just me, or was he acting weird?" Wolf asked as the crowd dispersed. They only wanted to hear from Zim.

"I don't think so, I mean, you heard him... he has somewhere to be," Rose defended Zim.

"Why was he wearing a cape?" was all Eve could say.

"I made it," Zim breathed out a sigh of relief. Although the walk from the gate to his home would have normally taken less than a minute, it felt like an hour. He stripped the makeshift cape off of his armor and tossed it to the side.

"Ah, you're back!" a small, cat-like creature said. Its coat was pure black and it was wearing a smaller version of the Rathian set Zim was wearing. It was Zim's personal Palico, the one who had attached itself to him the moment he stepped through the gates of Val Harbor on the first day. Zim had named him Blast.

"Ah! Your back!" Blast cried out when Zim took off his helmet. The Palico had noticed the Magala still clinging to Zim's torso armor. Zim was lucky the Magala was absolutely silent as he made his way towards his home.

"Shh," Zim said, kneeling down and covering Blast's little mouth. "It won't hurt you... probably."

"What is it, nya?" Blast asked.

"It's a baby Gore Magala," Zim explained. He removed his torso armor and set it on the ground in front of the Palico. The Magala remained attached to the armor piece. The Magala's scales had now become completely black and it looked like a miniature version of the adult form... if the adult form had see-through wings.

"Why would nya bring that here?" the Palico asked.

Zim shrugged, "I guess to do some research. So little is known about them, I figured some observation in a controlled environment might be useful."

"The guild won't like this," Blast warned.

Zim sighed, "I know." He continued to take off the pieces of his Rathian set and exchanged them for a simpler alloy set he had laying around. He kept his Lagiacrus long sword equipped. He made to walk out the door, but Blast slid between him and the door.

"Where are you going?"

"I need to ask a few questions," Zim said vaguely.

"You're just going to leave that with meow?" Blast asked.

Zim smirked and shut the door behind him, leaving Blast alone with the little Magala. Blast muttered a curse under his breath and turned his attention to the monster. It had not moved even a muscle since Zim had taken the armor piece off.

Blast stared at the monster as it slowly flared its wings and seemed to suck in a huge breath. _Oh dear,_ Blast thought to himself. He rushed towards the monster to pin it before it could let out a roar. Blast wrestled the beast to the ground and clamped its mouth shut. Even though the monster had no eyes, Blast could tell it was not pleased.

XXX

 **Alright, I hope none of you are confused. Like I said, I did some research and found out that the Shagaru Magala's virus actually contains their parasitic offspring. They infect a host and slowly kill them from the inside out before bursting free Alien-style. Originally, I was going to have Zim find an egg, but I re-wrote the story when I found out how they actually reproduced. That's why this chapter took so long. Editing was also a nightmare, and I kept getting distracted by Generations... I've already finished the village story line and I am almost done with the six star quests. I hope that I managed to replicate the way Palicoes talk well enough. I usually just skip through any dialog with them because I don't feel like deciphering what they have to say. For those of you who don't know, Palicoes replace certain words with cat puns. Anyways, happy hunting and stay tuned for the next chapter!**


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter 4 - Kopfkino:

Author's Note:

 **It was never my intention to abandon this story. I would like to apologize to the people who have been waiting fervently for the next chapter. I had put this (and one other story) on hiatus so I could focus all my time on Tedium. But Tedium is finished now (took a lot longer than I had thought) so I'm returning to the two stories on hiatus. Starting with this one.**

 **A lot of you have been complaining about the chapter titles. It was my intention to reveal what they all meant at the end of the story, but because several of you have asked (a few of you asked multiple times) I will tell you now…**

 **Title – Weltschmerz: Despair caused by the state of the world.**

 **Chapter 1 – Anfang: The beginning.**

 **Chapter 2 – Fuchsteufelswild: Pure animal rage, IE: fox-devil-wild.**

 **Chapter 3 – Fingerspitzengefühl: "Finger-tip feeling" or intuitive empathy with things and people.**

 **I was going to save these until the end because they gave away the what the chapter was about. Sort of. In any case, I'll start putting the definitions at the start of the chapter from here on out. Please, enjoy!**

XXX

 _Kopfkino: The act of playing out an entire scenario in your mind, IE: head-cinema._

Zim grumbled as he curled himself into a tighter ball. It turned out the Wycademy was located in a new village called Bherna. Unfortunately, it was a considerable distance away from Val Harbor, requiring him to take a hot air balloon.

Despite the warm fire keeping the balloon afloat, it was freezing. Zim wore simple alloy armor, not the best set for retaining heat. So he sat, huddled in a ball, trying to keep himself from freezing in the frigid temperatures.

Zim practically threw himself out of the balloon when it started to land. The Palico running the balloon yelled at him, but Zim pretended not to hear. _Land, sweet, warm, land,_ Zim sighed in relief. He could feel his fingers again.

The feeling of relief vanished when he began looking around the little village of Bherna. It looked like he had stepped into a warzone. Large scorch marks littered the ground, there were empty spaces filled with ash where buildings would normally stand, and there were large claw marks on the surviving buildings.

The claw marks were strange; they didn't look like they were made by a monster. They looked like they were made by a giant sword. Continuing to glance around, he spotted a person staring at him with glowing red eyes. Zim steeled himself, fear not evident on his features. He still wasn't used to having a helmet that didn't cover his face.

The man was clearly a hunter, judging by the dual swords strapped to his back. He wore black armor and a red headband. The man looked like a ninja. Zim did not recognize the armor, but didn't get the chance to ask the man. The strange man turned his back to Zim and walked away.

Scoffing to himself, Zim continued to look around. In the very center of the village was the ruined table of a dining area, and impaled deep within the wood was a massive blade. Zim approached the strange blade cautiously. Despite the cool silver color, the blade seemed to radiate heat.

There was no handle, in fact it looked like it had been cut off of something. Zim reached out to touch the blade, but was interrupted when he heard the small voice of a Palico behind him, "May I help you… nya?"

Zim whirled around to see a plain white Palico. The Palico gave him a strange look, which Zim returned. They stared at each other for a moment, neither speaking. "Uh…" the Palico muttered, "Greetings and salu… mewolu… I give up. Welcome to Bherna. I've never seen you before, who are you?"

Zim raised an eyebrow at the smallish Palico, "I'm Zim. I've come from Val Harbor; I need to get into the Wycademy."

The Palico perked up, "Ah, you've come to the right place, I see. The Wycademy is just up that way. Unfortunately, it's not quite finished yet, but I'm sure the headmaster would be more than willing to see you."

Zim gave the Palico another strange look. He seemed to have abandoned the way Palicoes normally spoke. "Is there anything else I can help you with?" the Palico asked.

"What happened here?" Zim gestured to the ruined shops. "Were you attacked?"

"Yeah…" the Palico admitted. He pointed towards the giant blade, "A monster with a blade for a tail stormed the village and attacked. Thankfully, we had a hunter here experienced enough to deal with the mystery monster. He cut off the beast's tail and it ran away."

"Is the beast still alive?" Zim asked. His hunter instincts were starting to kick in, this was usually when a gild lady would hand him a quest to finish off the monster. But he wasn't here to hunt.

"Yeah, the hunter was unable to find it again. We can't have him too far away from the village in case there's another attack, right?"

"Who is this hunter?" Zim asked, suspecting the man who had turned away from him was the hunter the Palico was talking about.

"I think you saw him. He was the one wearing Nargacuga armor. He's a G-Rank hunter from Val Harbor, like yourself. Second best hunter in the world, from what I've heard. Perhaps that's all the Guild could spare because he's our only guardian," the Palico sighed.

 _Number two hunter in the world…_ Zim thought to himself. But a more concerning issue presented itself. "How often is the village attacked?" he asked.

"Every now and then. Yesterday's attack was the worst one yet, but I doubt that we'll be seeing that monster again, not after it lost its primary weapon. Mostly just smallish monsters, nothing he can't handle," the Palico said.

Zim nodded thoughtfully. He gave his thanks to the helpful Palico and made his way towards the Wycademy. About halfway up the path, a thought struck Zim. _What am I going to say to them?_ he wondered.

He doubted he could ask the headmaster if he wanted a live, newly… birthed Gore Magala hatchling. That would raise questions, questions that Zim didn't want to answer. He would have to think of a different approach,

Grimacing, he continued to make his way towards the Wycademy. He hadn't thought of anything. The Wycademy was a plain white color and the roof was clearly unfinished. There was a tarp covering half the roof, announcing to the world that the building was vulnerable.

Despite its unfinished nature, there didn't seem to be anybody working on the building. _A day off, perhaps?_ Zim wondered, but didn't dote on it. He wasn't here to inquire about the state of the Wycademy, just certain pieces of information.

 _That's it!_ he realized. He figured out how he could avoid suspicion. He made his way into the Wycademy. Despite the building not being done, there were plenty of people dressed in white lab coats and several who looked like professors. _That's right, this is also a school._

The Wycademy would be the Guild's largest University, but it was also the largest monster research center, library, and science department. The Wycademy was essential in the advancement of the Guild's ability to sanction hunters. All the more baffling why they would only have a single guard…who spent most of his time down in the village.

The researchers that infested the Wycademy leapt out of his way, clearly recognizing his hunting status. He walked through the main hall, a lavishly decorated, yet unfinished, room. The walls were five stories high and beautiful columns supported the roof, if there was a roof.

The room was filled with artifacts in glass cases. Weapons coated the walls, leaving a very bland white color showing through the cracks. No two weapon was alike, though Zim figured they were just for show. They would likely be useless in a real battle.

Zim made his way through the main hall, doing his best not to make eye contact with the confused researchers. As the Wycademy was mainly an academy, very few fully-fledged hunters would ever set foot in the building.

Even if the largest library in the Guild was located here, very few hunters ever actually read anything. Though Zim believed it could be due to the lack of literacy among hunters. Or arrogance believing that they do not need to learn all they can.

Zim made it out of the main hall and was presented with a long hallway littered with doors. Grimacing, he made his way down the hall, each door was shut, but he could tell lights were on. They were class rooms. Probably for the beginners, the more advanced students likely had a weapons training gym on one of the lower levels.

Zim could see an end to the hallway, but before he could reach it, a loud bell rung. Zim raised an eyebrow in confusion when the doors burst open and hunters-in-training, no more than little kids, came streaming out.

 _So the school year's already started,_ Zim made a mental note. He had never gone to an academy for hunters, he was a natural. He was fully self-taught and had no need to go through the ten years of hunter training, starting at age eight. The students flooded the halls, heading in different directions.

Many seemed to be leaving, their day complete, others entered different classrooms for more lessons, and others still headed towards the end of the hallway for one reason or another. A large bubble formed around Zim as the students passed him by. They refused to go anywhere near him.

Zim smirked to himself, that meant that he should be able to get to the end of the hallway with little trouble. He began to wade through the sea of children, they were doing their best to stay out of his way. He wasn't actually much older than many of the students.

He knew that normal academies would teach students dull history, literacy, and math lessons for eight of the ten years they were put through school. The last two years were spent with weapon training and practice hunting. It seemed as if the Wycademy operated the same way.

Zim began to feel a little awkward when students his age passed him by. They gave him strange looks, as if not believing he was a fully-fledged hunter. If he were to open his mouth and say something, they would likely be outraged that he had gotten a free pass. This all meant, of course, that the oldest students in the Wycademy, or any academy for that matter, were older than him.

There was a door at the end of the hallway, which Zim stepped through. On the other side of the door was a labyrinth of corridors and hallways, zig-zagging in one direction or another. There were some rooms, Zim assumed more classrooms.

He took a look down one of the corridors to find it void of classrooms, but at the end of the corridor was a massive set of double-sided doors. _The weapons training area,_ Zim figured. It was also likely the arena where they trained the nearly ready hunters on how to fight the lower level monsters.

But Zim wasn't looking for the training area, so he moved on. Many of the hallways had sharp turns that Zim couldn't see down, or diverted in two or even three different directions. But there was one hallway that looked promising.

There were no labels on anything, which he thought was ludicrous, but one of the corridors was lined with paintings. Some were dealing with the start of the hunting tradition, others were of the guildmaster, and yet others were of some mystery woman. A woman Zim assumed to be the headmaster.

Zim continued to follow the pictures, turning and backtracking, trying to find the right hallway where the path divided and the pictures lead down both paths. Eventually he came to yet another divide in the hallway. Zim sighed and observed his options.

Thankfully, both hallways were short, but lead to two very different endings. One hallway led to a simple door. The door was blank, but so far removed from the rest of the classrooms that Zim decided it wasn't a classroom.

The other hallway led to a set of stairs. Zim was torn, should he keep exploring or try and see what was behind that door? He took a deep breath and turned right, towards the stairs. Whatever was behind that door was likely not the headmaster's office.

He descended the winding staircase's dozens, perhaps hundreds of steps. His eyes widened in awe when he reached the bottom of the staircase. The steps lead to the Wycademy's immense library. _The staircase is overkill,_ he deadpanned as he started to explore the library.

Thousands of bookshelves lined the walls and spiraled inward, creating an intricate pattern with the shelves. Millions of books and scrolls dotted the shelves. Zim could spend his entire life in this room and would never make a dent in reading all of the material.

Zim wandered throughout the library, eyes darting from shelf to shelf, trying to comprehend how many books there were. "May I help you?" someone tapped him on the shoulder.

Zim's vision cleared as he became self-aware once more. He turned slightly to see a smallish woman pressing her fingers together. Zim turned around fully to address her, "Perhaps. Tell me, what do you do here?"

She raised an eyebrow when he went straight to the point, skipping pleasantries. "I'm a student here," she mumbled, realizing that the man she had tapped was a hunter. She was likely no use to him.

"Ah, so you know your way around?"

"I guess…" she said hesitantly.

Zim nodded. He took another look around the library, making a note to himself where it was and how to get to it. He never knew when he would have to come back… or when he would want to come back. And the library was a definite plus to coming back to Bherna, balloon ride be damned. "Can you take me to the headmaster?" he asked.

"The headmaster?" she echoed, pondering why he would want to speak to the headmaster. But she was unable to muster the courage to ask. "You missed her, she's right next to the staircase leading to the library."

Zim narrowed his eyes at her, "I didn't see any door."

She raised an eyebrow, "Which way did you come in?" She followed Zim's finger as he pointed towards the staircase that led him down into the library. "Oh… yeah, that staircase is for professors. They have their offices nearby; the headmaster's office is near the student's staircase."

Zim slapped a hand to his forehead. He sighed and said, "Alright, lead the way." She managed a tiny "huh?" before complying to his request. She gestured for him to follow her and began to lead him towards the headmaster's office.

"M-m-may I ask what your n-n-name i-is?" she sputtered out after mustering the courage to ask.

"Zim, I'm a hunter with the guild," he explained.

"Oh, I figured that," she laughed nervously. "My name is Isa. This is my last year here…" she mumbled. Zim had to strain his ears to hear her, but he managed to catch her name.

They made their way to a staircase on the opposite side of the library. Zim's eye twitched as they climbed the staircase and he realized that the student access to the library was connected to the main hall. He muttered a curse for not seeing it to begin with.

Isa watched as Zim cursed and then knocked with restraint on the headmaster's door. And they waited. And waited. And waited until Zim had begun to tap impatiently on the floor. And still no answer.

Zim gritted his teeth and considered busting through the door. Despite his young age, he was well built and could easily crash through the door. Or he could just remove the lock from the door with a well-placed swing of his Lagiacrus longsword.

He heard screaming as the debate raged in his mind. He voted to ignore the screaming and continue assess his situation. The screaming was probably from the children… this was academia, after all.

It wasn't until the screaming escalated and he felt something tapping on his shoulder. Zim turned around, clearly annoyed, and glared at Isa. She only pointed towards the entrance to the Wycademy.

Zim's eyes widened when he saw a massive dinosaur-like creature snapping at the running and screaming researchers. The monster was a brown color and its eyes glowed red. _Deviljho,_ Zim recognized.

"What the hell is a Deviljho doing here?!" Zim growled, grabbing Isa and pulling her into cover. She was unresponsive. She had passed out. He noticed a group of students cowering in the corner. He dragged Isa over to them and set her down.

"Are you a hunter, mister?" one of the younger students asked. The statement got his blood pumping. This was why he was a hunter. To protect the innocent.

"A damn good one," he grinned, his hunter instincts activating. He cracked his neck and pulled his favored longsword from his back. He ran towards the danger, not from it like the screaming researchers. He would ponder how the beast got into the Wycademy later, first came slaying it.

The Deviljho let out a powerful roar, causing everyone to slap their hands over their ears. Zim gritted his teeth and kept moving. The rolled under snapping jaws and ran his blade through the monster's stomach. Blood spurted from the wound before it was closed, but electricity coursed through the Deviljho's body, causing it to scream out.

 _Deviljho is weak to electricity,_ Zim grinned. He was carrying the perfect weapon. He continued to roll around, dodging the frantic strikes and slashing when he could. He was used to fighting alone, and he had faced Deviljhos before. Alone.

The researchers and students watched the spectacle in awe as Zim ran rings around the monster. Zim rolled to his feet and swung his sword with all of his might, but the Deviljho was ready. Its jaws closed around Zim's blade and the two engaged in a deadly game tug-of-war.

Both refused to let go of the weapon, but the Deviljho was clearly in agony as it held the blade in its vulnerable mouth. Zim grinned as one hand left his weapon and gripped the top half of the Deviljho's jaw.

With his hand gripping the rapidly weakening jaws, he grabbed the lower jaw with his other hand, giving up his weapon for the moment. Then, with all his strength, he began to pry the Deviljho's jaws open with his bare hands, his weapon dropping to the ground.

The Deviljho squealed as its jaws came close to breaking from Zim's strength. It jerked its head violently, wrenching his maw free from Zim's deadly grip. The hunter reacted immediately, reaching down for his weapon and slashing at the vulnerable face.

A jagged scar stretched from the monster's eye down to its upper jaw. A scar that could never heal. Red eyes narrowed as it glared at the hunter. Zim was unimpressed. The monster lifted its head and let out a loud, pain-filled roar.

Zim ignored the sound and rolled to avoid the monster's snapping maw. He kept moving, the beast had entered its enraged state. Extra blood pumped through its veins, engorging them and highlighting the scars of previous battles on its skin.

Zim jumped to the side, avoiding a furious charge, and ran his blade down the beast's side. The wound healed instantly, but Zim was still splattered with warm blood. It distracted him long enough that he didn't see the tail heading his way.

He was struck hard and sent flying. He slammed into one of the many broken columns, curtesy of the monster's rampage. Zim snarled as he righted himself. He could feel his broken ribs. The monster snorted at him and waited for him to attack again. Zim cursed himself for not brining any potions. He would have to finish this fight with broken ribs.

He grinned, blood starting to pool in his mouth. He turned and spat the blood on the ground before brandishing his weapon and charging the monster once again. To his surprise, he didn't reach the monster first. It was the hunter that had turned his back to Zim that made it to the monster first.

Zim faltered in confusion and nearly stumbled to the ground. His ribs ached and his breath was labored, but he took a deep breath and continued his charge. The number two hunter in the world was already dancing around the Deviljho, his dual blades crackling with red lightning. _Dragon element,_ Zim realized. It was even more effective against Deviljhos than electricity.

Just as Zim reached the monster, who had its back to him, the number two hunter did something strange. He jumped into the air, grabbed the monster, and propelled himself even higher into the air, easily clearing the massive Deviljho. Zim watched in awe as the hunter turned into a deadly pinwheel and struck the monster several times, knocking it over.

Zim knew that Insect Glaives could pole-vault over monsters to gain an advantage and try and mount it, but dual blades weren't supposed to be able to do it. The G-Rank hunter easily mounted and then knocked the Deviljho over. Zim snapped out of his stupor when he heard the sound of a horn.

It was a Palico's health horn! Zim could feel his ribs snap back into place and his breathing return to normal. He let out a sigh in relief and assaulted the monster again. With his strength and the number two hunter's strength combined, the Deviljho was forced into a corner.

Acting out of panic, the monster lashed out at the G-Rank hunter with a frenzied lunge. The hunter didn't panic, instead leaping into the air and vaulting off of the monster's jaws, completely dodging the attack. He once again turned into a deadly pinwheel and landed blows across the monster's back.

The Deviljho attacked Zim next, lunging once again. It realized that it was finished, it just wanted to take one of them down with it. Zim had no explanation for what happened next. Zim had begun to panic slightly when the Deviljho bared down on him. He knew that his dodge wasn't going to be able to save him.

But he rolled anyways. The Deviljho was equally confused as Zim threw himself three meters to his left in a spiral, completely avoiding the monster's attack. He landed on his feet and rushed at the beast, ignoring his confusion for the moment.

His blade dragged against the ground as he charged the beast. The Deviljho didn't have time to scream as Zim swung in a vicious upper cut, cleaving the monster's head clean off of its body. The monster's head turned in the air before landing several meters behind Zim.

Zim's grin grew feral as he let out a loud, boisterous laugh. The other hunter smirked and pulled down the face mask he was wearing. "Your first Jho?" he asked. He sheathed his dual swords on his back in a single fluid motion.

Zim turned his blazing, green gaze towards the other hunter. "No. I've hunted plenty, my first time with a partner, though," he responded.

The other hunter rose an eyebrow at Zim's claim, "Really? You're that good? Are you G-Rank?"

"No. I'm from Moga Village. We don't have G-Rank down there; you probably haven't heard of me… I moved to Val Harbor about a year ago doing undercover work helping the newer hunters," Zim explained.

"Well you're damn good, being able to fight after taking a hit like that… and no potions. I passed you off as a newbie when I saw your armor, but you have real skill kid. How long have you been hunting?"

Zim's eyes flicked upwards as he pretended to count the years, "Since I was six… so ten years."

The other hunter looked legitimately impressed, "My name's Malakai," he held out a hand for Zim to shake. Zim looked at him for a moment, sheathed his longsword, and accepted the greeting.

"Zim."

"Yup, never heard of you. Why aren't you G-Rank?"

Zim smirked, "As I said, I have an undercover assignment. After I finish it, the guild's letting me start where I left off. At the top of high-rank." He sighed and put his hands behind his head, "Are you really the number two hunter in the world?"

"Yeah. There are twenty-seven G-Rank hunters in the guild and we're ranked by skill. I'm number two, but now I'm not so sure," he chuckled. "You're half my age and just as skilled as me. In a year or so… you may be number one."

"If I can get this assignment finished by then, hopefully," Zim smirked. It felt… odd having his ego stoked.

Their conversation was interrupted as a woman in her early thirties ran up to the two of them, "Thank God you got here in time Malakai, I thought we were doomed," she said.

Malakai turned to the woman, "He's the one who struck the killing blow, he didn't need my help." He gestured towards Zim.

"You?" the woman asked in disbelief.

"My name is Zim, I'm a hunter from Val Harbor," Zim said, holding out his hand.

"I'm Dr. Gloria Steele, headmaster of the Wycademy," she said. Zim raised an eyebrow, none of the pictures on the wall from the hallway he walked down were of her. "You were expecting a Wyverian, right?" she grinned.

"Honestly, yes," Zim said, drawing his hand back. She had refused to shake his hand.

"Well it's a good thing you were here. Malakai refuses to leave the village, believing its protection comes first… even though he was commissioned to guard the Wycademy," she glared at Malakai briefly. "But, on behalf of everyone here, thank you for eliminating this monstrous scum."

Zim flinched slightly at her rhetoric. Malakai gave Gloria a hard look, "Now Gloria, let's not freak out the guests." She chuckled slightly, but didn't apologize for her harsh words. "How did it get in here?" the G-Rank hunter asked.

She pursed her lips, "I don't know. I was in my office at the time, so I have no idea." Zim's eyes narrowed dangerously at her words. _Why didn't she answer the door…?_

Malakai nodded good-naturedly, as if expecting that answer, "You're always hard at work. Take a break every now and then, maybe come and have lunch with me." They both burst out laughing, but Malakai's seemed forced.

"Well, I need to get back to the village," Malakai said, turning around and walking away. He paused before he got too far and he turned around to address Zim, "Hey, Zim. When you're finished here, come down to the village and speak to me before you leave, alright?"

Zim nodded and Malakai walked away, giving his fellow hunter a good slap on the shoulder. Zim turned back to Gloria who was shaking her head. "He always comes off as so cold, but he's really nice once you get to know him. And he seemed to take a liking to you… strange, he doesn't really like other hunters… you must really be special."

Zim scoffed at that. He could do without people claiming he was special, he got enough of that crap from the guild. It was one thing for a fellow hunter of a similar skill level to tell him he did a good job, it was another for some random citizen who had nearly gotten killed to say it.

"So why are you here from Val Harbor, Zim?" she asked.

Zim hesitated and decided that telling the headmaster what was going on was a bad idea. So he decided to lie. He wasn't proud of it, and it didn't accomplish his purpose, but he didn't trust the headmaster. First the violent description of the Deviljho, Malakai did say is was a common occurrence, and then she claimed to be in her office when she wasn't.

"I heard you had a big library. I wanted to see for myself," Zim said with a straight face. He would come back later, and try and find head of research. Without contracting the headmaster's attention.

The headmaster smirked, "Indeed. It's strange to see a hunter who enjoys to read. I know I can speak for Malakai when I say that he's never set foot inside my library. Have you already been?"

"Been, gotten lost, and found my way out. It's a labyrinth down there," Zim said. She grinned and let out a controlled laugh.

"Well it wasn't my idea, but yes, it's a bit confusing. So you enjoyed it?"

"Absolutely. Books are underrated in the hunting community, if it were up to me there would be a mandatory library session for all practicing hunters," Zim said, knowing it was what she wanted to hear.

"Exactly! So, is there anything else I can help you with?" she asked, still smiling, but Zim could see the edge of her mouth twitch.

"No, I need to be heading back to Val Harbor. I've been here too long anyways, but I plan to come back in the future," he promised. She nodded and watched him leave the Wycademy. _I wonder what her deal is,_ he pondered.

As he promised, he made his way down into the village and headed towards Malakai. The G-Rank hunter was holding a stack of wood and helping a Palico rebuild one of the buildings that had been completely obliterated.

"Hey Malakai," Zim said, walking up to the elder hunter.

"I didn't even hear you approach, that's pretty good… though I do think I'm going deaf in one ear, but that's a story for another time," Malakai said.

"Is there something you need?" Zim asked.

Malakai smirked, "I think the question is what do _you_ need?"

Zim thought for a moment before saying, "What was that technique you were employing against the Deviljho? I didn't think dual blades could vault."

Malakai grinned, "They can't. It's new thing I'm working on, I call it aerial style. It allows me to vault over monsters even without an insect glaive." Zim raised an eyebrow, but didn't comment on the name.

"Well, you have something to answer to as well. You did something similar, didn't you?"

"I honestly have no idea what I was doing… it just _happened_. But it was exhilarating, none-the-less. And I completely dodged the attack, even if I shouldn't of," Zim explained.

The older hunter nodded thoughtfully, "Yeah, that was interesting to watch. What are you going to call it?"

"Huh?"

"You gotta name it, lest someone else take credit for it," Malakai grin widened.

Zim rolled his eyes. He had always thought naming things was stupid. The smithy named each weapon and armor piece that he handed back to Zim. And they were always overly complex too. Zim sighed, "I guess… bushido doesn't sound awful."

Malakai nodded, "Yeah, I guess. I would've called it _adept style_ to keep the style theme going. But hey, I didn't patent it." He thought for a moment and then grew serious, "Look, I'm probably not going to be leaving here for a while. Feel free to stop and chat if you're in the neighborhood. I have no idea why you're here, but I have a feeling you're going to be back."

XXX

Zim stretched for a moment as he stepped off of the hot air balloon. The ride back was even colder, considering that it was pitch black outside. Val Harbor was a light in the darkness, however. Zim cracked his neck.

 _Well that was a failure, I'm going to have to consider a different option,_ Zim groaned to himself. He would worry about that after a good night's rest. Hopefully Blast was able to keep the Magala inside and quiet, but Zim wasn't sure if the Magala had even moved.

So he was completely shocked when he stepped into his house and saw it in ruins. There were scratches running down the walls, his bed was broken, and his item box was damaged. Some of the scratches were clearly too small to be from the Magala…

Blast sat in the center of the room, panting heavily. Beside him lay the Magala. Despite the lack of eyes, Zim realized the little monster was asleep. "I… kept it from making too much noise… and escaping," Blast mumbled before collapsing onto his back, fast asleep.

XXX

 **It feels good to write Monster Hunter again. I went back to school since the last chapter… I'm without the game. I've been needing a fix (I'm not an addict, I swear) and this was the perfect thing. I typed for nearly three hours straight…**

 **We dip our toe a bit into Generations here. For those of you who don't know (it's ludicrous to believe that you haven't played Generations yet, but I'll put this here anyways) Bherna is the main village in Generations. And I had Zim discover one of the hunting styles, though Malakai discovered a different one. We might come back to Generations at the end of the story. I was going to make the Jho savage, but decided a regular Jho was more than enough.**

 **Anyways, the Wycademy was a failure, but Zim might try again, this time focusing down the head of research. So we may get to see Malakai, Gloria, and Isa again. In the meantime, what's Dr. Steele's deal? She seems a bit strange, don't you think? Anyways, please stay tuned for more frequent updates!**


	5. Chapter 5

Chapter 5 - Schnapsidee:

Author's Note:

 **Here we go again. To answer one of your questions, yes the name Zim is taken from Invader Zim, but the character himself remains completely separate from the Invader. Before we start, I'm fully aware that you don't need to repair damaged armor pieces, but for the sake of this story, you do. Please, enjoy!**

XXX

 _Schnapsidee: An idea you had while drunk that you'll regret._

Zim had shut the door behind him softly as to not wake either of his housemates. They were out cold but Zim would rather not have to deal with either of them. He did, however, take his Rathian chest piece with him.

The Magala hadn't caused too much damage to the armor piece, but it had gotten several dents and scratches in the scuffle that ensued between Blast and the Magala. _I've really got to think of a better name for the Magala,_ Zim thought to himself.

The chest piece was still usable, but it was better to have it in tip-top condition in case he needed it for a hunt. He dropped the piece off at the smithy and paid a little extra to keep him quiet about the high rank piece. Then he headed to a nearby tavern.

He wasn't a common patron at the tavern, he didn't often feel like being intoxicated, but he had nothing better to do at the moment. _I guess that's how you become a drunk,_ Zim realized. He didn't want to admit it, but he was in a bind at the moment. His home was damaged beyond what he could repair by himself.

Which meant he would have to hire someone to repair it. They would have questions… plus he would have to find a place to put the Magala. _Maggie? No that's dumb,_ Zim sighed as he sat down at the bar. Dodging questions would be easy, finding a place to put the Magala would be significantly more difficult.

The bartender gave him a strange look, but said nothing due to the armor he was wearing. Although there was a posted drinking age, it did not apply to hunters. He ordered something strong and cheap. The bartender raised an eyebrow and gave him a type of whisky that Zim didn't bother to remember. He took a sip and immediately grimaced. Well, at least it was strong.

He heard laughter next to him, "First time drinking, kid?" Zim turned slightly to see an older man grinning at him. The man clutched a mug in his hands. The two locked eyes and Zim drained the rest of the whisky in a single gulp in defiance.

"Not exactly," he said. The statement earned him another round of laughter coming from the older man. Rolling his eyes, Zim ordered another shot and turned around to observe the ambiance of the tavern. The man turned back to his drink and said no more.

The bar was dimly lit, the light didn't reach the far corners of the building. Zim could tell shady business was happening in the dark corners of the tavern. Gambling, though not illegal, often incited conflict so it was held in the far reaches of the establishment.

 _This is some shady place,_ Zim thought to himself, letting his imagination run wild as he drained his third shot of the whiskey. _Maybe there's some underground sex trafficking,_ he smirked to himself, ordering a fourth round. _At least that would be something to report to the guild._

"I didn't know you drank," a voice snapped Zim out of his stupor and brought him back into reality. Zim's eyes focused on Wolf's face, smug smirk absent. The tall man was wearing simple leather armor and rubbing his arm continuously.

"Not often," Zim said, ordering yet another shot. Wolf just stood there, staring and rubbing his arm. Zim was starting to become uncomfortable.

"I need your help," Wolf admitted. Zim nodded, but did not say anything, instead he waited for Wolf to continue. "I have a bit of a gambling problem, you see." Zim rolled his eyes as if it was the most obvious thing in the world. "And I need a loan," Wolf finished, oblivious to Zim's scorn.

Zim thought for a moment, "How much?"

"A hundred thousand zenny."

Zim hissed but opened his wallet none-the-less. He began counting through the bills, trying to come up with a hundred thousand. As he counted, four hunters walked up to the duo, arms crossed.

"Can't pay your dues so you go to a child?" the tallest hunter smirked. A thick mustache graced his upper lip, but his face was void of a beard. He wore simple armor, but the shape denoted it as high-rank. _Early high rank gear, must have just gotten there a few weeks ago,_ Zim noted.

The other three sported similar gear, but their faces were completely bare. They were much younger than the first man, perhaps they were his sons. "Don't worry I'm going to pay him back too… he's just a bit more _lenient_ than you folk," Wolf said. Relief was evident upon his breath, he thought he was safe.

"Hey, kid, you a hunter too?" the first man asked Zim. Zim nodded silently, continuing to count his money. The man gave Zim a confused look, "Why bother bailing out a lowlife like Wolf? He ain't gonna pay you back, ya know? He's been blowing us off for weeks now."

One of the other hunters chuckled and said, "Yeah. He thought that he could clear his debt through winnings, that didn't end well, did it Wolf?" The man turned to grin savagely at Wolf, who nodded meekly.

"Ya see, kid? Don't bother paying us. We'll just beat him an inch of his life and collect his next hundred hunts' pay!" the first hunter grinned, Wolf only gulped.

Zim sighed and stood from his stood, leaving the final shot he had bought on the counter. "What game did he lose so much on?" He tucked his wallet back into his pocket. Wolf gave him a panicked look.

The first man looked at Zim in confusion, "Poker."

 _"_ _Zim,"_ Wolf hissed urgently, as in knowing what Zim was going to do.

"Ah, _my_ game. Would you fancy me a match?" Zim grinned. The four hunters looked at each other. The older hunter shrugged and motioned for Zim to follow him.

 _"_ _What are you doing?"_ Wolf hissed.

 _"_ _I don't have a hundred thousand zenny,"_ Zim whispered back.

 _"_ _You're not going to be able to beat them! They're good…"_ Zim rolled his eyes at Wolf's statement and sat down at the table. The other hunters were already sitting. There was a lone candle burning on the corner of the table closest to Zim, casting shadows across the other four hunter's faces.

A deck of cards sat in the middle of the table. The first hunter reached to grab the deck, but Zim was faster. "Don't mind if I do," he said, snatching the deck before the hunter could. Zim placed the first four cards face up, all of them aces.

Zim raised an eyebrow at the hunters, who all refused to meet his gaze. He then laid down a fifth card, showing it to be a two card. "Well, cheating's no fair, is it?"

"We were going to shuffle it," the first hunter shrugged.

"Shuffling can be rigged. Each of you put five thousand in the pot as penalty, we'll start from there," Zim commanded. The four hunters looked at each other, but reluctantly complied. After the money was in the center, Zim began clumsily shuffling the cards. "Sorry, it's been awhile," he admitted.

He placed the deck in the center of the table and motioned for the older hunter to cut the deck. The older hunter complied and began dealing cards. Zim waited until all of the other hunters looked at their cards, reading their faces, before looking at his own.

He glanced at them for half a second before putting them face down. The first hunter placed a bet and the three hunters following him all called. Zim grinned and pulled his wallet from his pouch and tossed the whole thing on the pot. "All in," he said.

The first hunter's eyes widened, "Are you sure?" He glanced at his cards again, his companions did the same.

"Positive," Zim said simply. Wolf resisted the urge to slap a hand to his forehead.

"Why?"

Zim's grin widened and he leaned in, "You can either all fold and take your hundred thousand and I take the rest… or you can challenge me and walk away with only a hundred thousand. You'll have lost a lot more that way." Zim leaned back, smirking slightly.

The first hunter glared at Zim, trying to determine if he was bluffing. Eventually, he sighed and set his cards down, face up. "I fold," he said. His companions gave him shocked looks before they too folded.

Zim flipped over his cards to show that he had only a two and a seven. Literal garbage as a poker hand. Zim shrugged, "I don't actually know how to play poker," he admitted. He grabbed the entire pot, counted out a hundred thousand, and placed the rest back into his pouch. He then walked away from the table.

"That was amazing," Wolf gaped as Zim made his way back to the bar. "I don't know what to say."

"How about thank you?" Zim growled.

"Thank you… I don't know when I can get the money to you, but I promise I will!" Wolf claimed.

Zim nodded, but took Wolf's word at face value. He would likely never be seeing that hundred thousand again. It really didn't matter, though. He got stipends from the guild every month containing many times more than what he had lost tonight.

As Zim reached the bar, he felt a tap on his shoulder. He turned to see who was touching him, only to meet a fist face-first. It was the older hunter. Zim was launched backwards, hitting the bar. He was stunned momentarily as the hunter grabbed him by his chest plate and hoisted him upwards. The hunter was quite a bit taller than him, though not as tall as Wolf.

The other three approached with weapons drawn, pointing them at Wolf. He immediately surrendered. "Now I don't like being played a fool, ya hear?" the hunter said. "I'm a high-rank hunter, on the path to G-Rank, are you sure you want to fool with me, kid?"

Zim regained his bearings and glared at the arrogant hunter. Zim took a deep breath, "First off, you'll never make G-Rank when you spend all your time here in this bar. Second, you just made it to high-rank a week ago, at most, judging by your armor. Third, I don't like being called a kid."

The older hunter chuckled and threw Zim hard against the bar, but Zim had prepared himself for that. He hit the bar and pretended to be stunned once again, enticing the older hunter to step closer. "Big words from a low-rank," he snarled.

It was at that moment Zim reacted. He grabbed the man's arm and twisted it hard before delivering a deft hit to his elbow, shattering bone. The man let out a scream as Zim swept his feet out from under him. The man crashed to the ground and Zim pinned him with a hand against his neck.

Zim considered revealing that he was indeed a high-rank hunter, but decided against it with Wolf watching. The hunter cried out as Zim struck him on the temple with his heavy alloy gloves. The man was knocked unconscious immediately, but Zim didn't use enough force to kill him.

The other three pointed their weapons at Zim, hoping their numbers would form an advantage. Zim stood and drew his own weapon, electricity crackling down its length. "The guild forbids hunters from fighting each other with weapons, unfortunately for you, I have a dozen… half-dozen sober witnesses that would be willing to testify that you attacked me first. That, if you survive," Zim warned.

The three hunters hesitated, but quickly turned violent. Their leader was down, so they could no longer think rationally. "Like we're afraid of a punk like you!" one of them yelled out and charged at Zim.

Zim easily sidestepped the clumsy, slow swing of the greatsword and stabbed the man through his thigh. Electricity coursed through his body as he screamed and dropped to the ground. The other two hunters, realizing the first's mistake of charging in alone, came at Zim together.

Zim caught the shorter one's sword with his bare hand and used his blade to block the longsword strike from the taller one. Zim struck out with his foot, kicking the shorter man's knee so hard it buckled. The shorter man collapsed, incapacitated.

Zim turned around and easily grabbed the taller man by the throat, forcing the man to his knees. The man foolishly dropped his weapon and brought his hands to Zim's, trying to force the younger hunter to let go of his throat.

Zim picked the taller hunter up slightly and tossed him to the ground. The hunter scrambled to his feet, but instead of running away, he reached for his weapon. _At least he stands and fights. They are no cowards,_ Zim noted as he swung his blade, slicing clean through the man's arm. The man screamed in agony as Zim smoothly sheathed his blade. Wolf, along with everyone else in the bar stared at him in a mix of awe and fear.

Zim walked over to the bar and drained the last shot that was still sitting there. He pulled the remainder of the zenny from his pouch and placed it on the bar. "For the noise and the blood," he explained.

"Keep it. I know that these four have quite the stash in one of the corners of this building. Let them pay for their own mess, no?" the bartender gave a weak smile. Zim nodded, but did not take the money back.

"You're not an ordinary hunter, are ya, kid?" the older man that had been sitting next to him at the bar said. Zim thought for a moment, _am I not ordinary? I guess not…_ Zim shook his head discreetly. The man let out another boisterous laugh, "You'll do fine kid. Cheers." He raised his mug before turning back around.

"That was amazing!" Wolf said walking up next to Zim as he exited the bar. "Those were high-rank hunters and you beat them within an inch of their lives… I actually think you may have killed one of them."

Zim rolled his eyes and stopped walking. "Look. Forget this ever happened. I mean it. You forget this and I'll forget you owe me anything."

"You're not a low-rank hunter are you?" Wolf questioned, but froze when he saw Zim's blazing eyes. "I think I may have had a bit too much to drink, what happened again?" he said, intentionally slurring his words.

"Damn straight," Zim responded, walking away from Wolf. He headed back towards the smithy to pick up his Rathian chest piece. He stumbled slightly, _Perhaps I drank too much…_

XXX

Zim waited, tapping his fingers for the better part of an hour, waiting for Blast to wake up. He sat on his bed, dressed in full Rathian gear, tapping and waiting. Finally, just as he had started to doze off, Blast mewled something incomprehensible.

Zim's closing eyes snapped open as the dozing Palico sat up and turned to the hunter. "Good, now, tell me what happened," the hunter said, not giving the Palico any time to gather his surroundings.

"… The moment you left it snapped. It was all I could do to keep it from waking half the neighborhood. What happened on your journey, nya?" Blast explained. He spoke slowly as if waking from a drunken stupor. He had yet to shake sleep from his eyes.

Zim nodded slowly, "The Wycademy was a bust. But I may end up going back, I met the most interesting person." The Palico chuckled, but was silenced by Zim's glare. "In any case, we're not going to be able to repair the damages ourselves."

"Nya, doubt it. What are mew going to do?" the black cat asked. He flinched when the Magala shuffled in its sleep. _Gal? No, that's still stupid,_ Zim thought to himself.

"Covering the cost will be easy, avoiding the questions is doable… but what to do with the Magala?" Zim muttered to himself. Blast managed to hoist himself up onto Zim's bed. It was something he was rarely allowed to do, he had his own bed and Zim preferred the Palico stuck to it.

"Specter," Blast said after he situated himself. Zim raised an eyebrow but wasn't sure how to respond to the seemingly random word. "We can name it Specter," Blast clarified.

Zim raised a finger as if to respond, but slowly lowered it. He could think of no reason not to call the little Magala Specter. "Very well, Specter it is," Zim declared. The two sat in silence for several minutes, letting the name hang in the air as they watched the sleeping monster.

"I think it's about time you and I go out hunting together," Zim declared.

Blast turned to Zim, wonder and excitement evident in his eyes, "Really?" was his only response. Zim smirked slightly and nodded. The Palico contained himself, but was celebrating internally. "If I may ask, what's brought this on?"

Zim's smirk widened. He was a solo hunter most of the time, only pairing up with others for the guild. He and Blast had never been hunting before, it made sense the Palico would be so excited. But… "We take the Mag… Specter with us, and while we're gone, we can have the house repaired. I'll throw in some extra cash to avoid questions, but we'll have to be gone for at least a few days."

The excitement was stamped out in Blast's eyes as realization and disappointment set in, "I'm only going to be babysitting Specter, aren't I?" To this, Zim only smirked.

XXX

Zim cracked his neck. This was to be his first high rank quest in a month. It was a simple quest as far away from Val Harbor as possible. Hunting Zinogres at Heaven's Mount. It took three days just to reach the Mount, it could take hours to kill the two Zinogres that were plaguing the Mount, and it would take three days to get back to Val Harbor. Plenty of time for his home to be repaired.

Heaven's Mount was only actually a day away, if you went by balloon, but Zim opted for a horse and carriage. It extended the time they would be out, it was cheaper, and it kept the Magala… Specter hidden.

Zinogres were tricky to hunt for the uninitiated. They were surprisingly agile for their size, flipping and jumping around the battlefield to attack. Zim had only hunted one other Zinogre, but he assumed hunting two at a time would be a similar process.

The monsters were weakest to ice. So he had dug deep into his weapons cache and pulled out a weapon he rarely used. There were very few monsters who were weakest to ice where he came from. Monsters who were weak to ice were usually weaker to water, so Zim opted to use water weapons in place of ice. But the Zinogre was weak to ice first, then fire, and Zim's ice weapon was better than his fire weapon.

Zim decided to bring a weapon named the Nardebosche. It was made from the Barioth, a frightening tundra pseudo-wyvern. It had taken a long time to make the Nardebosche, but the weapon was well worth it for the only monster from his home that was weakest to ice, the Diablos. But the Zinogre was no Diablos.

"Are you sure you want mew to watch Specter? Can't we keep him at the base camp?" Blast whined.

Zim sighed, "Unless you wish to stay with it." To which Blast vigorously shook his head. He had been waiting for this day for a long time. Because he had opted to take a caravan, Zim had driven it all the way to the base camp, rare for a high rank quest. He grabbed the only item in the box, a map, and headed out, Blast scampering behind him.

Zim took a deep breath as he downed a psycho serum. The serum increased his sixth sense to superhuman proportions and allowed him to sense large monsters by their presence alone. The world became clear and hyper colorful. Scents, sounds, sights became magnified to extreme proportions.

But Zim clamped down on his senses, refusing to let them control him, and directed them towards the smell of monsters. The effects of psycho serums were intoxicating and could turn a weaker man into an addict. Hunters could resist the addicting effects better than normal humans, but the beauty of the world through his serum enhanced eyes called to him.

He let out a growl of annoyance when he sensed the two Zinogres in the sixth area of Heaven's Mount. They were together, which would make fighting them difficult. And he had forgotten dung bombs. But the thought of fighting two highly aggressive monsters at once did not deter the young hunter. He forged onwards, through area two and towards area six, his companion following closely behind him.

The Palico had brought an ice weapon of his own, but would be less than useful with the Magala strapped to his back in a bag. The Palico's armor was nothing more than rags when compared with Zim's, but it would serve to protect the cat-like being long enough for him to escape underground if too injured. Taking the Magala along with him.

Because the Rathian armor was weak to electricity, Zim had decided to bring a different set. Although electricity would be less than useless against a Zinogre, which was why he did not bring his Lagiacrus longsword, it was advantageous to have armor that resisted electricity. So he brought his Lagiacrus set to give him a fighting chance against the princes of thunder. Plus, he had a shield.

Inevitably, the effects of the psycho serum faded. Zim's head spun as his senses returned to normal. It was like waking up with a thousand hang-overs, but it only lasted a moment. His mind cleared and his senses sharpened once more. He downed an armorskin and demondrug and prepared to step into area six, where the two Zinogres were waiting.

He crept into the area, motioning for Blast to remain quiet and hoping Specter chose to remain so as well. He emerged into the area unnoticed, for the Zinogres were too distracted with each other to care about Zim.

They were circling each other, electricity and thunderbugs flying off their bodies. Zim crouched and waited, _perhaps they are fighting over territory._ If they were, when one of them lost they would leave, weakened and defeated. Zim would slay the victor then head after the loser. Zim smirked to himself as he waited for the spectacle to begin.

The two circling Zinogres suddenly stopped and lunged at each other. Before they slammed into the other, they leapt backwards, creating a space between them. There was a pause before they threw themselves at each other once more. Instead of colliding head-on, they passed each other, brushing shoulders. They skidded to a halt and began circling again, but instead of each other, they circled the space between them, tail-to-tail.

Zim narrowed his eyes at the display and they suddenly disengaged and created a space between them once again. _"What are they doing, nya?"_ Blast whispered. Zim ignored him for the moment and continued to watch the Zinogres charge at each other once again, only for one of them to leap high into the air and over the other, still charging, Zinogre.

 _"_ _I think this is mating dance,"_ Zim whispered to his companion. It definitely seemed that way. Although extremely difficult, it was possible to tell the gender of the Zinogre by the length of their horns. And one had slightly longer horns, showing that one was the male.

 _"_ _What are we going to do?"_ Blast asked carefully. Zim pondered as the two closed into each other once again, this time slowly. They rubbed their muzzles together, signifying they had accepted the other. The spines and fur on their backs extended as electricity coursed through their bodies.

 _That's just great,_ Zim groaned. They had been charging their enraged state, and where now fully enraged. _"We aren't going to be able to separate them and now they are both enraged. We cannot run… do you think you could distract one of them for me?"_

Blast looked at the slightly larger male, _"I think I can. I'm just not sure how long with Specter with me."_

 _"_ _Just long enough for me to slay the female. Get ready, I'm going to draw both of their fire and then you charge in before the male hits me. Hopefully he'll become distracted with you and I can focus on the female,"_ Zim explained, standing from his crouch. He cracked his knuckles and approached the cuddling pair. They were distracted, Zim continued to go unnoticed.

Something strange happened as the hunter approached his prey. The male was completely oblivious to Zim's presence, but the female kept glancing over to Zim's location, forcing him to duck into cover. He wanted to at least get the first strike off before they attacked him. He peeked out of cover to see the female still staring at him. Panic rose in his chest, but the female did not raise an alarm.

Instead, she gave him a pleading look. As if begging him to leave. Zim's eyes narrowed as he shook his head slowly. He could not leave. He decided against doting on the female's awareness of him, or the fact that she would rather him leave than fight him. Strange for a highly aggressive monster.

The female seemed to hesitate before uncurling herself from her mate. The mate looked clearly confused, but quickly became enraged when she gave a frightening war cry. The male copied the cry and they struck battle poses. Zim cursed to himself as he stepped out of hiding, weapon drawn.

The male charged at him first, the female stealthy trying to flank him, but it did not go unnoticed by the hunter. Before the male crashed into him, Blast leapt a considerable distance, considering Specter on his back, and crashed into the charging monster. They collided and the Zinogre lost sight of Zim in the confusion.

Zim turned towards the cornered female. She whimpered and lowered herself to the ground in surrender. She had never wanted to fight. It was her mate that was harming the local trade, not her. Zim clenched his eyes shut. The guild would never accept that. They had tasked him with slaying both of the monsters, not just one of them.

He grip tightened on his sword as he slowly opened his eyes, allowing his hunting instinct to take over. It dulled the pain and the fear and allowed him to fight even if he didn't want to. Even if he was injured or half-dead. He would fight until the last breath, and the female Zinogre was no different.

 _A cornered cat fights twice as hard,_ Zim remembered as the fear left the monster's eyes and was replaced by the primal urge to survive. The Zinogre leapt at the hunter, who gracefully dodged underneath her, striking at her exposed chest. She howled in pain as cold gripped her wounds, forcing them to stay open and sting for far longer than they should, before they closed and the ice faded.

The two entered the deadly dance of combat, the monster swung with all her strength, lightning surging from her strikes, and the hunter dodged and retaliated, the cold grip of death evident in each blow. The female Zinogre eventually disengaged with a pained yowl. She had lost.

She began to limp away, towards area five. She did not hope to escape, only prolong the inevitable. Zim did not pursue her, instead turning back towards Blast. Blast had been busy dodging the massive male Zinogre, striking when he could. He was just trying to keep the monster busy as Zim dealt with the female.

Zim entered the fight by slicing the tail clean from the monster's body. Rage filled the monster's eyes as lightning crackled and jolted the area around the monster. Zim had rolled away, dodging the area attack. Blast wasn't quite as lucky. He was caught with the full brunt of the attack and was sent flying. Zim did not bother going to him, instead he focused down the male.

Dodge, dodge, dodge, swing, swing, swing, the cycle repeated itself as Zim wore the male down. Finally, the horns cracked and the beast rolled away in pain, his charged state ending. The male limped towards area five, in hopes of escaping the hunter. Zim let him go, knowing that he would catch up to him.

He ran over to his companion to make sure he was alright. To his surprise, the Palico sat up, his fur sizzling, and grinned at the hunter, "I'm fine, just a scratch." Zim raised an eyebrow but did not press. The Palico likely did not want to leave his hunter's side.

Zim and Blast left area six and entered area five. They were greeted with the male Zinogre growling at them, the female Zinogre cowered behind him. Her fur was still standing on end, signaling she had yet to leave her enraged state, but they male was visibly panting between growls. He was not long for this world.

Zim stepped forward confidently, it was over. The Zinogres could run all they wanted, but they would never be free from Zim's perseverance. Suddenly, the male leapt at him. Zim stood strong and waited for the beast to descend upon him before lashing out with his shield. The small shield caught the Zinogre right on the jaw, disorienting the monster and causing him to collapse to his side.

Zim carefully approached the monster's head and, with one fell swoop, lopped off the male's head, a feral grin present on his lips. Awareness crept back into the hunter's eyes as he looked over at the female. She stared at him in shock, in part from the loss of her mate, in part from the realization of her imminent demise.

Zim watched the female approach her mate. She paused as she passed Zim, but neither lashed out at the other. She had… given up. Surrendered to the mighty hunter. Zim watched, green eyes softening, as she nuzzled her fallen mate one last time.

Zim was not aware that Zinogres mated for life, nor was he aware that this pair had been together for only a year. The feral grin Zim had been wearing while slaying the male was gone. He didn't feel remorse for the fallen, nor guilt for his actions… rather he felt "void." An empty feeling that he had not felt since he had slain the adult Magala.

The female stepped towards Zim, her eyes dull and her enraged state gone. She stood, blankly staring at the hunter, waiting for the inevitable. She had accepted her fate. Zim trembled as the monster stood before him.

He gritted his teeth, in anger or sorrow, he was unsure. He had never trembled before. Neither man nor beast had seen him quiver in his boots. He had thought himself without fear… but now he was unsure. Unsure if he was able to kill this innocent. She had never wanted this, she was just unlucky.

Zim could've taken the quest to slay a Rathian and Rathalos pair that were terrorizing the Volcanic region. She could've been stuck with an overconfident hunter who would have been easily overwhelmed. The quest could've gone uncompleted for some time, long enough for the pair to escape to somewhere uncharted. They only came to Heaven's Mount to mate, and Zim only came to hide Specter. She was just… unfortunate.

Zim turned his blazing gaze upwards, looking the female in the eyes as his grip on the Nardebosche tightened so hard his fingers ached. She spared him a single glance… a look of understanding. _She knows,_ Zim realized as his arm moved against his own will. His hunter's instinct took over.

The sword entered her throat and found its way to her brain, impaling itself in her skull. The blood that flowed from the wound was frozen from the nature of the weapon. Her regeneration worked to repair the wound, but she did not move from the sword's grasp, thus the regeneration was not able to heal the wound.

Her eyes started to close as her brain froze, her mental processes started to shut down. Zim removed the blade and tossed it aside as he got the notice that the quest had been cleared. He had to head back to the caravan after getting a single minute of carving.

But Zim did not carve either Zinogre. He took the female's head into his hands and slowly lowered her to the ground with her body. Her lack-luster eyes thanked him as her eyelids shut forever. She was gone from this world. Zim had won.

But he did not feel victorious.

Instead, he could feel the questioning gaze of Blast.

And a single tear drip from the corner of his eye.

He felt hollow instead.

XXX

 **And another chapter down. It was a long one, I know. Zim engages in the fine art of drinking and gambling (how does he not know how to play poker?) before beating up some insolent thugs. Then he goes on a hunt far away from his home in the hopes that he could avoid questions and finding a place to hide the newly named Specter. And… well, you can see how the hunt turned out. How much more can he take before he breaks? How long until Specter is discovered? Zim must realize he cannot hide the monster forever… stay tuned until next time.**


	6. Chapter 6

Chapter 6 - Zugzwang:

Author's Note:

 **Alright, here we go again. It took a bit longer than I wanted. I thought long and hard where I wanted this chapter to start and where I wanted it to end. But I think this order is best. Enjoy!**

XXX

 _Zugzwang: The pressure of making a strategic move when you'd rather do nothing._

Zim trudged into Val Harbor, hollow was his soul. He headed straight for his home, hoping that it was finished. He had left enough money behind for the builders to have no reason to stay. Blast walked beside him, head bowed in solemn silence.

The Palico carried the Magala in a bag on his back. Even the Magala, who had been quite active during the battle, was completely quiet. That, or it was asleep. Zim passed the smithy without looking at the man who was waiting for a weapon to be made.

"Zim! Hey man, I haven't seen you in a few days, what happened?" Wolf said walking over to him. Blast looked up at Zim who nodded his head towards the house. The black Palico ran towards the building, not stopping for any reason.

Zim turned towards his comrade, "I was hunting."

"I had figured that," Wolf grinned, "You were gone quite a while!"

"I was hunting Zinogres at Heaven's peak," Zim said through clenched teeth, not wanting to speak of his hunt.

"Heaven's Peak, huh? That's only a day's ride from here to there, you were gone nearly a week!"

Zim glared at him, "I did not have the fares to pay for a balloon ride. I had to take a carriage, a three days ride there and another three back." Zim turned to storm away. He did not wish to speak to Wolf.

He felt a hand on his shoulder, halting his movement. Zim turned his head to look at Wolf, and noted the concerned look on the man's face. "What happened?"

"A displeasing quest to say the least," Zim ground out. Wolf, hand still on his shoulder, walked towards a table, Zim following against his will. The duo sat down and Wolf ordered two drinks. "I'm not drinking… never again."

Wolf snorted, "Whatever you say. Did you fail the quest?" The beverages arrived at the table. Wolf paid for both of them and set the spare one in front of Zim, in case he wanted it.

"No."

"What was it? The quest, I mean," Wolf said, taking a swig from his mug. Zim said nothing, but glared at the mug in front of him. _"High rank?"_ Wolf whispered too loudly for Zim's taste.

Zim immediately glared at the man, "I thought you had too much to drink that night. You imagined that," he growled.

Wolf snorted, "Not too much to drink. I'll keep your secret if you tell me what's going on. You know that I want to be a high rank hunter one day, right? And so does Eve and Rose too."

Zim nodded, "And you're well on your way, thanks to me." He sighed and grabbed the mug, taking a slow drink. "My quests are supposed to be confidential, due to the secretive nature of my assignment… but if you must know, I was hunting Zinogres. Two of them."

Wolf grinned, happy that Zim confided in him, "Zinogres, eh? I've yet to see one, can you tell me about them?"

Zim smirked, "They are wolf-like in appearance. Massive, yellow and blue wolves with lightning surging around them." Zim leaned back on his seat, "And they carry themselves like royalty. Like they're the princes of the forest."

Wolf nodded thoughtfully, "And were they any good in combat?"

"They're surprisingly agile creatures, jumping and flipping all about, lightning ever flashing around them," Zim said, looking down once again, "But even two of them at once were no match for the mighty hunter."

"Then why aren't you celebrating?" Wolf asked, draining the rest of his drink. "Victorious men should celebrate!" he cheered, raising his mug.

"Because I only killed one of them," Zim said, not looking up. Wolf raised an eyebrow when Zim suddenly stood, refusing to make eye contact. "The other one ran herself upon my blade of her own accord because I killed her mate."

"Is that why you're upset? A monster couldn't bear to live in this world without her beloved? So we slaughter all of their mates and they kill themselves! It's a good thing that you didn't have to fight her," Wolf said, placing his mug back on the table, "Might be a bit boring, but for the better that you don't…."

He was interrupted when Zim lunged across the table and grabbed him by his chest plate. He dragged the confused man over the table and hissed in his ear, _"Let me be clear. A good hunter knows his prey, and I know that the female was an exception. She was not a monster, just an innocent bystander."_

Wolf collapsed to the ground, "I'm afraid that I will not be joining your hunting group again. A different band of pathetic fools needs my help, then perhaps I can get back to hunting alone," Zim growled while walking away.

Wolf struggled to his feet, hand over his heart. _He's lost his mind!_ Wolf said to himself. He pondered telling Eve and Rose of what happened, but decided against it. Zim had done him a kindness, covering his debt for him even though he didn't deserve it. He would repay that kindness how Zim wanted it, with his silence. Though, he would tell his sister and girlfriend that they needed to find a new fourth person for their hunting group.

XXX

Zim approached his home once again. He planned to rest for a very long time before setting out to find that other band of fools he had promised Wolf. He snorted to himself, he doubted it would be his last group of fools. He would have to be careful not to reveal himself to any of the new hunters.

He was so deep within his own mind that he missed the man standing next to his home. "Master Zim," the voice drew him out of his thoughts. _I cannot catch a break,_ Zim sighed to himself, but turned towards the voice anyways. He was so close to the door, he could just walk in and forget that the man had ever shown up.

"Guild Chancellor," Zim greeted respectfully, bowing slightly. The guild Chancellor dealt with specific hunter assignments and special missions, such as the one Zim currently working on. The Chancellor was second only to the Guild Master, the oldest and wisest of all the hunters who made most of the guild's decisions.

"I have heard talk of your prowess, but two Zinogres at once was deemed suicide. And yet here you are, mission completed," the man said walking towards the hunter. He extended a hand, which Zim accepted in a simple, firm handshake. "We must talk, may I?" he gestured towards the door.

Zim barred his path, however. He could not allow the man to see the Magala. It was a risk he could not take. "I'm very sorry, Chancellor, but my humble abode is undergoing renovations. It would be best if we speak elsewhere."

The man nodded, "The guild hall then. Please follow." The two made their way towards the guild hall, a massive building filled with tables and bars. At the very front was a stage. Although the stage was empty, there was still remnants to the festivities of the previous night.

The Chancellor took a seat at the back. He looked around carefully and waved his hands. Several large men surrounded the table, covering the two from what was happening outside of the circle. "I was wondering where your guards were," Zim smiled.

The Chancellor took a deep breath, "They give us a sense of privacy. I had hoped to do this in your home, away from prying eyes, but this is good enough, I suppose."

"Well, I'm listening," Zim said, leaning back slightly. The armored men provided a sense of claustrophobia that Zim had never experienced. He did not feel like he was in private, rather as if he had no escape.

"We received a report from Malakai, he claimed that you nearly single-handedly slaughtered a Deviljho at Bherna. And protected the Wycademy. For that we give you thanks," the Chancellor bowed his head slightly.

"I do not need thanks. I got plenty of that the night it happened," Zim sighed. The villagers and professors at the Wycademy would not leave him alone. They made it difficult to leave.

The Chancellor let out a loud laugh, "I had heard that's how you are, but I did not believe it. A hunter who wants not praise." Zim smiled weakly. "You are in a position to garner much praise. You have ten years of experience over all these hunters here, you could easily become their idol. And yet you chose not to."

Zim sighed, "They would cast me out when they realized what I was."

"A prodigy? The youngest hunter to ever start hunting? All the more reason to praise you, I would think," the man said.

Zim shook his head, "I'm afraid not. The lower rank hunters… are arrogant, to say the least. The believe that they are the best hunters on the planet, they just need to prove themselves as such. _Keep fighting, keep working up through the ranks, keep slaughtering, never stop._ That's why they'll never progress."

The Chancellor nodded, "That's your observation?" Zim returned the nod. "Then is it not worth showing them in the right direction, like you're doing?"

"Perhaps, but it would be better not in secret, I believe. The hunters with real potential would flock to me and see the difference between our skills," Zim said, "Then they will learn."

"You'll find no one flocking to you that way," the Chancellor sighed, "But I think you know that. Is this your way of saying that none of these hunters have potential? Are they all really worthless?"

Zim sighed, "Not entirely worthless. In my time undercover I learned that we need these weaker, arrogant, foolish hunters. The weak ones feel the need to be strong, so they are willing to hunt. They must be arrogant, believing they are deserving of a higher rank so that they will keep hunting. And foolish so that they will fight even the most dangerous monsters without a second thought."

The Chancellor nodded, "You've matured much from the young boy who killed that Lagiacrus threatening your village."

"Was this for my sake or for theirs?" Zim asked, leaning forward, glaring at the man.

"Both, really. We figured that you would find the best with the most potential and that you would learn what an average hunter must go through to achieve even low rank. Most high rank hunters tend to forget their low rank days because their pasts are beneath their futures," the Chancellor conceded.

Zim took in a deep breath, "So what is this all about? This is about more than my mission, isn't it?"

The Chancellor nodded, "Unfortunately. The guild wants to congratulate you on your excellent job over the past few months. We want to end your mission a few months earlier than we had predicted."

"Because…"

The Chancellor's expression darkened, "A great threat is approaching Dundorma."

"So ask the G-Rank hunters for help, that's what they're for."

"Do you not think that's exactly what we've done? There are twenty-seven G-Rank hunters, but the calamity is deserving of only the top ten. Of the top ten, only three have responded," the Chancellor sighed.

"Responded? What of the other seven? I know that Malakai is busy at the moment, but surely the others…"

"Unlike high rank and low rank hunters, G-Rank hunters can pick and choose what quests they wish to go on. We cannot just order them to defend Dundorma. Number eight, six, and four all responded," the Chancellor said.

"So you come to me? A threat deserving of only the top ten hunters in the world and you come to a lowly high rank hunter masquerading as a low rank?" Zim raised an eyebrow.

"Malakai said in his report that you were as good as, if not better than him. You are an excellent hunter, Zim. We are sure that three of our best hunters can take this threat on themselves, but it's better safe than sorry."

Zim nodded, "What of the best hunter in the world? Can he not help?"

"He is… occupied at the moment. I am very sorry, but we are asking you, just to be sure."

Zim sighed deeply, "Very well. What will I be facing?" The next words out of the Chancellor's mouth instilled fear, even in him.

Fatalis

XXX

Zim had dug deep into his item box, trying to find his strongest set. When he was still a boy, not even thirteen, he had stood against one of the strongest monsters ever recorded by the guild. The Alatreon.

The Alatreon was a peculiar beast, it was an unstable entity. On the ground it would use fire and the red lightning of the dragon element. But in the air it would switch to lightning and ice. He was forced to find an armor set that could defend against all four, and he managed to find one.

There was a particular set that resisted fire to a tremendous degree and lighting as well. It had neutral weakness to dragon, but was weak to ice and water. Zim, not caring about defending against water, managed to gem out the weakness with ice resistant gems and a talisman for ice. That set: the Agnaktor.

He remembered the grueling days in the Volcano, hunting dozens and dozens of the fire leviathan. Until finally, he had made the perfect anti-Alatreon set. Nostalgia swept through Zim as he placed the set on his body. He had made it larger as he grew, but he only ever used it once. It still fit, and still was gemmed for ice resistance.

He removed the talisman and the gems and added extra fire defense. The Fatalis, though a more frightening beast than the Alatreon, only had fire at its disposal. Comforted by the extra defense, he grabbed his weapon. A longsword curved in the shape of a cruel scythe. An Alatreon longsword, Dark Claw "Demise."

It was his strongest and rarest weapon. He cherished it so much so that he had never taken it into battle before, as to not mar the edge with blood. Because he had saved Loc Lac, the guild had allowed him to take as much as he wanted from the felled beast. Enough to make a single longsword with red lightning running down the blade.

Zim traveled quickly to Dundorma and went straight for the exit gates. There he saw the Chancellor with three other hunters, all dressed in their best G-Rank gear. One wore what Zim assumed to be a Rathalos set, another had Teostra, a monstrous fire-drake, and the third one wore a type of gunner's set he did not recognize.

"Ah, Zim. This is the hunter that will be accompanying you for your hunt," the Chancellor said. Zim bowed slightly in respect for his superiors. "Allow me to introduce Elm," he pointed towards the man in Rathalos gear, "This is Alexander," he pointed to the man in Teostra armor, "And this is Ruby," he pointed to the woman in the unknown gunner set.

"How is this kid high rank? He doesn't even look old enough to be a low rank hunter," Ruby said, glaring at Zim.

"I assure you, Zim is a high rank hunter. True, he is younger than any other hunter, but he has been hunting for ten years. He is a prodigy," the Chancellor claimed, gesturing towards Zim. Zim only nodded.

Ruby snorted, but Elm responded, "Malakai said that you were better than he was. That you didn't even need his help slaying that Deviljho, despite you not having any potions and after taking a hit that cracked your ribs."

"I can attest to what Malakai has told you. I must admit, however, this will be my first time hunting with hunters of your caliber. As I have only ever hunted with low ranks," Zim said respectfully, dipping his head slightly.

Ruby scoffed and walked towards the quest counter to post the quest. The three of them walked over to the quest board, ready to accept the posted quest. "Is that Agnaktor armor?" Alexander asked, pointing towards the red armor Zim wore.

"Aye, it is. You don't have any around here?" Zim responded, to which Alexander shook his head.

"You've never been hit by a G-Rank monster before, have you?" Elm asked, accepting the Fatalis quest Ruby posted. Zim and Alexander followed suit.

"Unless that Deviljho was G-Rank," Zim smirked, "I have never had the pleasure of fighting a G-Rank monster."

Elm chuckled slightly, "Bherna doesn't have G-Rank, much like Moga." The three of them walked towards the exit gate and prepared to leave. Zim double checked his item pouch, making sure that he had brought his best equipment. Mega-potions, demondrugs and armorskins, and items to make more.

"I hope you're good at dodging, high-rank," Ruby snarled as she set out on the quest, the other three following behind her. Zim cracked his neck. He was standing among legends, about to fight a God. He didn't have time to dote on the Zinogres. He had to be ready.

XXX

 **And we'll get the Fatalis fight next chapter. This chapter is a bit shorter than the last, just because we were setting up the Fatalis fight next chapter. Will Zim be able to keep up with the G-Rank hunters? Stay tuned to find out!**


	7. Chapter 7

Chapter 7 - Drachenfutter:

Author's Note:

 **Here we go once again. Zim (and friends) vs the mighty Fatalis. I went back to MH4u and fought a Fatalis again… solo because I couldn't find a group willing (or good enough) to fight one. I would like to make note that death is possible in this story. And there is some Japanese thrown in here too, but more on that later. Enjoy!**

XXX

 _Drachenfutter: A gift to a spouse as way of apology. Literally: Dragon food._

The balloon dropped the team into a safe campsite not far away from the gate of caste Schrade. The castle was not far away from Dundorma, but far enough that the team could fight to the fullest extent without worrying about harming others. The Fatalis was highly aggressive, it would not ignore the group of hunters.

Although there was an item box, it was tauntingly empty. The team took the opportunity to apply demondrugs and armorskins. The Fatalis hit hard and fast, Zim would have to be extra careful. His armor wouldn't be able to take the same punishment the others could.

The group stepped onto the castle lands and approached the massive, war-torn castle gate. The castle had been destroyed by some type of cataclysm, possibly by another Fatalis. Zim had heard whispers of a Fatalis that made the castle its nest before it was slain. The thought of someone slaying such a force of nature gave Zim hope, even if the story was likely fabricated.

The group walked towards the gate, not knowing when the monster was going to appear. But they all felt it. The monster was near. Zim's keen hearing detected a slight… _scraping_ sound, as if something massive was slithering alongside the castle walls. He paused and looked towards one of the destroyed walls that overlooked the drop from the mountain the castle stood on.

Nothing. Elm slapped a hand to Zim's shoulder, urging him to keep moving. Zim refused to budge. His refusal caused the others in his group to turn around. "What is it?" Alexander whispered as loudly as he dared. Zim put a finger to his mouth in a silent shush.

Alexander followed the silent command, but Ruby decided to speak out. And rather loudly at that. "What the hell is your problem, high rank?" Zim made an audible shushing sound this time, but Ruby only scoffed at him. "We have to keep moving, dragon-bait."

Elm whirled around to address her, hoping to set her straight that Zim was not _dragon-bait,_ as she put it. But he never got the chance to open his mouth. He froze before the words left his mouth as a massive black dragon crawled around the side of the destroyed wall.

It was a monstrous thing. Green eyes blazed as it glared at the group of hunters, A forked tongue swept over its jaws, outlining the many sharp teeth within the monster's frightening maw. Large bat wings flapped once as the beast made its way onto the castle grounds, its weight crushed one of the wooden battlements as it revealed how large it truly was.

And it was no small beast. The Fatalis was at least as long as a Deviljho, if not longer. Tongues of fire licked its way out of the beast's maw, foreshadowing its serious firepower. An extremely long tail whipped back and forth as if it was a writhing snake. Zim figured the Fatalis would be using that dexterous tail to its advantage.

The beast stood up, surprising Zim, on its back legs. It certainly became taller as it did so, surpassing the height of two Zinogres standing on top of each other. Its emerald gaze locked onto Zim as flames curled in its mouth. Zim's eyes widened as he realized what was going to happen.

The beast's maw opened wide, facing Zim and his companions, as Zim cried out, "Fireball!" and dove to the side. The fireball came shrieking out of the monster's mouth at blinding speeds and collided where Zim once stood. The other four hunters managed to move out of the way to avoid the considerable blast radius of the fireball.

The Fatalis let out an ear-piercing shriek, causing Ruby and Elm to slap their hands to their ears. Zim and Alexander both relieved that they had quipped high grade earplugs to defend against the monster's bone-chilling roar. Not that the roar didn't have a different effect on Zim. He noted how… human it seemed. Its high pitch pierced his mind and reminded him of the Magala as it died. _No, I don't have time for that,_ Zim growled to himself.

He rushed into position as Ruby and Elm shook off the effects of the roar. Alexander was by his side, pulling an insect glaive off of his back and throwing his Kinsect forward. Zim ignored him as he went right for the legs. The head, likely the weakest part of the monster, was far out of reach even for Zim's longsword. Elm rushed forward to assist Zim with the legs, hoping to topple the monster and give them time to wail on its head. Arrows flew in overhead from Ruby's bow.

Zim unsheathed his longsword and slashed the cruel scythe at one of the monster's legs. He vaguely noted Alexander leaping far above his head with his glaive, trying to mount the monster. Red lightning burst from the wound Zim inflicted before it closed quickly, a small burst of blood accompanying it. Zim darkened, the Fatalis regenerated faster than any monster he had ever encountered, even after being hit by one of its main weaknesses.

 _"_ _Itai!"_ a voice hissed loudly. Zim gave pause when he heard the voice, unsure of its origins, but continued the fight, dodging a tail swipe.

"Watch yourself, high rank! You almost died!" Ruby yelled out as she repositioned herself, never stopping her barrage of arrows. Finally, Alexander managed to mount the monster. Zim and the other two hunters ceased their attacks, Alexander would have to topple the monster himself.

 _"_ _I did not almost die,"_ Zim muttered to himself, but sharpened his weapon and cracked his neck, waiting for the monster to fall. The moment it hit the ground Zim pounced on the head. Slash, slash, slash, red lightning ever sparking from the blows. He could feel Ruby's arrows whiz by his face, too close for comfort. But he didn't waste his breath reprimanding her. She was a good shot; he knew that she could hit him if she so wished.

Elm's massive greatsword slammed down on the monster's head several times before it righted itself. It got up on its two back legs once again. "Don't aim for the tail, not even purple sharpness can pierce it!" Alexander cried out as he rolled away from the standing Fatalis.

 _"_ _Baka,"_ the voice hissed again. This time, Zim ignored the hissing sound and flung himself into the fray. He was being fairly aggressive, despite Ruby yelling at him to back off. But he masterfully dodged the claw swipes and tail swipes and he was too close to the Fatalis for the fire breath to hit him.

"ZIM!" Elm cried out as the Fatalis began to descend towards the ground at a blinding speed. A body slam. Zim tried to fling himself out of the way, but he was too late. Or so he thought. Once again, before the monster's body could make contact with him he threw himself several meters to his left in a spiral, successfully dodging the monster's attack.

Zim went in to attack the legs again, his scythe cutting into the Fatalis' limb in an upward slash that progressed his spirit abilities. The Fatalis roared in anguish, but did not stand back up on two legs. "What the hell was that?" Alexander called out as Zim rolled away from the Fatalis.

 _"_ _Shinu…"_ the voice echoed once more. The other hunters either didn't hear the voice or were ignoring it, Zim couldn't tell. Zim didn't have time to answer Alexander's question as the Fatalis charged forward on all four legs, snapping its jaws and dragging itself along. There was a horrible _creaking_ sound as the monster bit down hard into Alexander.

Armor gave way to strong teeth as the Fatalis stood back on its hind legs, Alexander still in its jaws. There was a breaking sound as shards of the Teostra armor Alexander wore fell to pieces. The three remaining hunters watched in horror as there was a loud, bloody _snap_ and Alexander fell to the ground in two pieces.

XXX

"What do you mean he won't be helping us anymore?" Rose asked. She had been going through her item box, trying to find a specific ingredient for psycho serums. She had just learned how to make them and was planning to employ one on the group's next hunt. A Kecha Wacha, a very large monkey-like monster.

Wolf scratched the back of his head, "I mean he's not going to be accompanying us on quests anymore." Eve raised an eyebrow but remained silent.

Rose sighed, "When did you hear this?" She found the ingredient she wanted and quickly combined the two materials into a successful psycho serum. She grinned excitedly and stowed it away into her pack.

"A few hours ago. I went to go and invite him on the hunt… he told me that he had joined a different hunting group and suggested we find someone else to go with us," Wolf explained. It was only a small lie. He _had_ gone to talk to Zim about joining their quest, but had gotten into a conversation about Zim's most recent excursion to Heaven's Mount.

"That doesn't mean he won't be hunting with us anymore…" Rose said. Wolf only shook his head. He couldn't tell them the full truth, that Zim was done with them.

"He's not coming back, Rose," Eve said, teeth grinding slightly. "Who cares, we don't need him anyways." She shrugged.

Rose composed herself, "I want to hear it from Zim."

Eve raised an eyebrow, "Didn't you hear Wolf? He's likely on a quest right now."

Rose shook her head in denial, "He could still be preparing. I'm going to go talk to him." She walked away from the exit gate and into the main part of town, approaching Zim's house. Eve and Wolf stared at her as she retreated before deciding to go with her.

Rose walked up to Zim's door and knocked on it. Nothing. Wolf and Eve managed to catch up as she knocked again. Still nothing. "Zim isn't here, Rose. He's on a quest," Eve urged. Rose refused to give up, knocking once again.

There was a muffled sound behind the door. Rose looked at Eve and Wolf with a raised eyebrow. She gripped the door handle and started to turn it. It was unlocked. She pushed to door open slowly and walked in, Wolf and Eve waiting outside.

Rose's eyes widened as she let out a short scream and tumbled backwards. In the center of the room was a small, black… _thing_ that looked too much like a Gore Magala for her liking. Her eyes narrowed as she scrutinized the _thing_ only to let out another scream when she realized _it actually was a Magala._

A black Palico came bounding into the open, having been slumbering in one of the hammocks on the back wall. Its emerald eyes widened when it realized Rose had seen the Magala. The two of them froze, waiting for the other to make a move. Rose was unsure of what to do, other than scream again. The Palico was trying to decide what to do with the screaming girl.

Eve and Wolf finally came into the house, having been reluctant to participate in their companion's breaking and entering. "You sound like you witnessed a murder scene," Wolf chuckled as he stepped into the one room house. Only to freeze when he laid eyes on the Magala.

"For all we know Zim _is_ a murderer," Eve said seriously before freezing as well. Her mouth hung agape as the Magala shifted in its sleep, Rose's screaming not waking the peaceful Magala.

 _"_ _What the hell is that?"_ Eve was the first to come-to and _not_ scream. Wolf was not far behind her, taking a few steps backwards. But he did not bolt for the door, to his credit.

 _"_ _Shut the damn door, nya!"_ the Palico snarled. Wolf turned slightly and slammed the door shut, shaking the small house. The Magala shifted again, causing all four of them to hold their breaths, hoping the beast didn't wake up. "It's a baby Magala," the Palico said after the Magala did not wake.

 _"_ _Why is it in Zim's house?"_ Eve hissed. She fingered the sword on her back, tempted to just slay the little monster. The Palico stepped calmly in her path, blocking the three hunters' line of sight to the beast. Her hand did not leave her weapon.

"Zim found it while on a gathering mission a few days ago. He decided to keep it in hopes of furthering our research on the Gore Magala species," the Palico explained.

"And who are you?" Wolf asked, leaning down slightly to offer a hand to his sister, who was still on the floor. She accepted his hand and he hauled her off of the floor and onto her feet.

"My name is Blast, nya. I'm Zim's companion… sort of," the Palico admitted. It shuffled in place, as if embarrassed that Zim had only taken him on a single hunt.

Eve opened her mouth to ask another question, but Rose beat her to the punch, blurting out, "Where is Zim?"

"Zim is on an important mission," Blast explained, throwing a glance at Wolf. Zim had told the Palico about Wolf discovering his true hunting status. But it seemed as if Wolf had no idea what was going on. Eve noticed the look Blast had thrown at Wolf, but did not comment on it.

"What mission?" Rose pressed. Blast refused to explain, causing Eve to narrow her eyes.

"Does the guild know about… _this?_ " Eve asked, pointing at the still sleeping Magala. She crossed her arms as she waited for Blast to answer, ignoring the dirty look Rose threw her way for interrupting.

Blast shuffled around a bit more, "Uh… no, nya. No, they don't." Eve's eyes widened in surprise. If the guild didn't know that meant that Zim was keeping the monster here illegally. A criminal offense, she pondered reporting him.

"Well… now what?" Wolf asked. Rose just shrugged, but Eve had a response.

"I'm not going to let this stand. I'm telling the guild about this… _thing_ ," she said. She turned to leave the house, but Blast skidded in front of the door. He unsheathed his weapon, inciting Eve to do the same. Blast and his weapon looked so small next to Eve and her charge blade.

"You are not going to leave…" Blast insisted. He turned to look at Wolf, as if expecting him to hold her back. "We will wait here until Zim gets back." He lowered his weapon, but did not sheath it.

Eve followed suit. "When is Zim going to get back?" she asked.

"I don't know," Blast responded.

 _"_ _Where is he?"_ Eve snarled, hoping that if they knew where he was then they might be able to guess how long he would be gone. But it might also give a clue to what Zim was doing.

"I can't tell you that," Blast said, sheathing his weapon. Eve sighed and did the same. She walked over to Zim's small cot, clenching her fist but resisting the urge to strike the small Magala, and sat down on his bed. It creaked under her weight.

"We wait," she decided.

"We wait," Rose echoed, taking a spot next to Eve.

Wolf sighed and repeated the phrase once more, "We wait." He decided upon leaning against the wall, next to Zim's item box. He resisted the urge to go through it, seeing what type of weapons and armors Zim possessed.

"You," Eve said, pointing to Wolf. He raised an eyebrow, surprised that she would address him with so much hostility. "Tell me everything," she finished. Blast's eyes widened, but he did not try and stop Wolf as he began to explain everything he knew about Zim. Eventually, Blast was roped into the explanation, to which he begrudgingly complied.

XXX

Zim stared in shock at the bisected Alexander. He was gone. His vision grew blurry as he slapped a hand to his helmet, trying to comprehend what had happened. This wasn't his fault, was it? He had never witnessed the death of a fellow hunter before. Sure, he had beaten men close to their deaths with his bare hands, but he had never seen anyone die in front of him. Certainly not a comrade either.

"Alexander!" Ruby cried out before releasing a barrage of arrows at the monster. The monster had paused for a moment, a hissing sound emanating from its hideous jaws. _It was laughing at them!_

The monster stood back on its hind legs, the hissing sound still coming from its maw. _"Awarena,"_ the chuckling took form of words Zim did not understand. But he did realize one thing, the words that he had been hearing were coming from the Fatalis itself.

Zim's eyes widened in understanding. He threw himself to the side in a roll, dodging the beast's sweeping tail. _It can talk!_ Zim mentally screamed. A language he didn't understand, but he could definitely tell the Fatalis was speaking. He didn't dare try and _talk_ to the beast… he doubted the Fatalis would want to speak to him, or could even understand him.

Zim rushed the Fatalis from one side while Elm charged from the other side, screaming a frightening battle cry. They had the beast in a pincer move, but it seemed unafraid of their blades. It turned and launched a fireball at Elm, striking him directly in the chest.

He was launched several meters away from the beast, his chest smoking. He panted heavily as he dug around in his item pouch for a mega-potion, thankful for the Rathalos armor's high fire resistance. Otherwise he would've been incinerated in one hit. He downed the potion and wobbled to his feet.

The Fatalis flung another fireball, this time at Zim. Zim flung himself in the spiral once more, completely avoiding the fireball. _Bushido seems to make me invincible,_ Zim noted. His blade sparked against the hard ground as he rushed the monster. He slashed its legs in a vicious uppercut, red lightning electrocuting the wound before it closed.

The Fatalis screamed again, this time turning its blazing emerald gaze towards Ruby. She had never let up her barrage of arrows. She noticed it had locked its gaze on her too late. Fire surged from its jaws in a massive jet of flame. Ruby dove out of the way, but Elm was struck once more by the fire. He screamed in agony as he rolled around on the ground trying to put the flame out.

The Fatalis' mouth lit with flame once more. Zim did his best to knock the beast over, trying to cancel its attack. But his strikes against its back legs were having no effect. Suddenly, a massive fireball spouted from its maw and collided on the ground a mere meter from Ruby. The fireball exploded, catching Ruby in the immense blast.

She was flung to the ground, unconscious from the pain. She was lucky not to be set on fire… or dead. Her chest rose and fell with shallow breaths, she was just knocked out. But she would not be any more use in this fight. Elm had doused the fire and downed another potion. It was just the two of them.

"We can't take this anymore! Bail out!" Elm cried out as he pulled a strange device from his pouch. Zim's gaze darkened as he realized what Elm was holding. It was a grappling hook. The balloon that had dropped them off was loitering in the air, far above the castle and out of the Fatalis' range.

Every hunter is given a grappling hook for each quest, which would be why each quest costed a certain amount to take. If a hunter wished to abandon the quest, he/she would fire the grappling hook into the sky and the balloon that dropped him/her off would pick them up. They would not be compensated for the items they used, nor would they receive any rewards.

The balloon grabbed Elm and he retreated into safety on the balloon. Ruby was still unconscious and Alexander was still dead, they could not bail out. If Zim left now, Ruby would certainly die and Alexander's remains would never be recovered. So he did not follow Elm in retreating, choosing to stay behind and fight to the death.

Even if it was in vain. He could still drive the monster off, but he doubted he could slay a monster of this caliber alone. He might be able to keep Ruby alive and protect Dundorma. Or he would die fighting to the death. An honorable death, but not one Zim would rush into. The Fatalis would have to earn its victory.

The Fatalis roared and Zim charged forward, unaffected by the beast's roar. A fireball came blazing towards him, bushido saved him once again. Slash, dodge, slash, dodge, slash. Now that he was alone, he had to be twice as careful. The Fatalis had no one else to target. Zim hopped over its sweeping tail and delivered another blow to its back legs.

 _"_ _Mada taizai!"_ the creature hissed as it swiped at Zim with its claws. Zim maneuvered around the clumsy swipes and managed a strike against its chest. The beast let out a scream as its chest plate cracked and did not heal, _"Itai!"_

Zim rolled away as the beast slammed to the ground with another vicious body slam. He had been careful to stay under the beast where he wouldn't have to worry about its fire. The monster started to slither forward, snapping its jaws, on all four legs, trying to bite into Zim as it did Alexander. Zim bushidoed out of the way and slashed at its form as it passed by.

He accidentally struck at the Fatalis' tail, sparks flew as his weapon failed to pierce the armor on the tail. The monster's momentum and the force that Zim struck the tail resulted in him losing his grip, the scythe pulled out of his hands and flung a few meters away.

Zim ground his teeth in frustration. If he were to die here, it would be with weapon in hand. The Fatalis immediately switched directions and stood back up on two legs, blocking the path to his weapon. It growled at him, tongue lashing out, as if it had already won. Zim cracked his knuckles and prepared to fight the beast hand-to-hand.

Zim's eyes darted up and down the beast, trying to determine a weakness. Flames danced in the monster's maw, preparing another massive fireball to launch at Zim. Even with all his fire resistance, he doubted he could face such a display of raw power. His eyes widened as he determined the beast's weakness. He shifted his stance and prepared to rush the monster.

The massive fireball left the Fatalis' maw just as Zim kicked off the ground, running as fast as he could. As the fireball collided with him, he rolled forward in a spiral, the bushido saving him from a fiery fate. He landed on his feet and kept moving forward. The Fatalis stumbled slightly in surprise from the smallish human rushing forward without a weapon.

 _"_ _Shinu!"_ it cried, lashing out with its claws. But Zim was prepared for this, he lowered himself and slid right under the attack. He came skidding to a stop next to the legs of the beast. He gripped one of the legs and pulled the limb out from under the monster with all his strength

Zim had noticed the weakness of the Fatalis was how stubby its legs were. As it stood on its hind legs, it relied on its massive tail and huge bat wings to keep its balance. But if it lost balance it was likely to fall over. The monster came toppling down with a scream of, _"Nani?"_ and collided hard with the ground.

Zim took the opportunity to rush to his weapon. Now re-armed, he rushed the monster once again and swung for its head. _The larger they are, the harder they fall,_ Zim smirked to himself as red lightning burst from the wound. The Fatalis rolled away, struggling back onto four feet.

It seemed to pant slightly before the edges of its maw curled upwards in a cruel smile. _"Watashi wa kono yōna kyōryokuna aite o mitsukeru shita koto wa arimasen. Watashi wa anata no tsuyo-sa, ningen o ninshiki suru,"_ its massive head dipped slightly before it charged forward. Zim planted the scythe into the ground and prepared to meet the monster head-on.

Just before its jaws snapped into Zim, he grabbed the monster's head and forced it closed. Smoke billowed from its nostrils as its eyes widened in surprise. It struggled as it tried to free itself, but Zim forced all of his weight down onto its head, pinning it against the ground. "Shut up," Zim commanded.

Its eyes narrowed in a glare as it continued to struggle against Zim's strength. It managed to force its mouth opened as it hissed, _"Oriru!"_ before Zim clamped down even harder.

"I said shut up!" Zim growled as he increased the pressure on its head. The beast suddenly stopped struggling. It collapsed to the ground, laying down as flat as it could. Its tail stopped swinging and smoke no longer emanated from its nostrils. The crystalline eyes widened as its entire body went lax.

Zim breathed heavily and let up slightly on the monster's head. He suspected the monster was pretending to be bested, so he refused to let go. He double checked his weapon's location. It was still within arm's reach. If the monster began to struggle again, he could reach it easily.

The Fatalis started to open its jaws, slowly. Zim did not immediately clamp down again, instead he let its mouth open ever so slightly. It coughed up smoke and began to speak once again, _"Watashi o rikai suru koto ga dekimasu ningen?"_ The hissing was strained and Zim realized he was leaning on its throat, constricting its breathing. He pondered for a moment if he could choke the beast out, but decided to reposition himself so the Fatalis could speak properly.

Zim sighed, "I have no idea what you're saying." The monster's eyes narrowed in confusion.

 _"_ _Anata wa Nihongo ga wakaranai nodesu ka?"_ it hissed.

"What?" Zim said, exasperated. He could no longer refuse the facts, the monster was definitely trying to communicate with him. Was it just _this_ monster? Or was it all Fatalis? Or was it all monsters, and he had just never heard until now? His mind spun with possibilities.

 _"_ _En-gl… Engli-li-sh… English?"_ the monster asked. It's voice, although still low, was no longer a hiss. It sounded almost… pleasant to Zim's ears. And it was definitely feminine… if Fatalis could even be female or male. They were Elder Dragons, after all.

"Yes… English," Zim affirmed. _I must be going insane,_ Zim thought to himself. But then again, he did have a baby Magala in his house. He had lost his mind a long time ago.

 _"_ _Oriru,"_ the monster repeated before pausing, _"Get off."_ It… _she_ … corrected itself… _herself_ , Zim kept correcting himself.

"No," Zim said simply. He would not let it… _her_ up, even if the monster was speaking English.

 _"_ _Onegai? Please,"_ she said. Zim took a deep breath and, against his better judgment, slowly got off of the monster. She stayed on the ground as he backed up a few steps and grabbed his weapon. He pointed it at her as she stood up on four legs, shaking her head slightly. _"A ningen has never… bested me like that before. Omoshiroi."_

"What language are you speaking?" he asked. _Such that I can understand it?_ he thought to himself.

 _"_ _Nihongo, a language I… learned from Kami, my aniki. Brother,"_ she said. Her long tongue flicked out like a snake's and darted back into her maw. _"How is it you can understand me? I have yet to meet a ningen that can understand me."_

"Ningen?"

 _"_ _Human,"_ the monster said after a brief pause, as if trying to remember what the English word was.

"I have no idea. Do all monsters speak… Nihongo?" Zim said, trying to wrap his mind around the talking monster.

 _"_ _I do not believe so… Nihongo is a language for myself and my aniki,"_ she snorted smoke from her nose. She bent down slightly so that her head was on level with the hunter. He heard her breath in deeply before her eyes widened. _"You do not smell like a ningen…"_ she muttered.

Zim raised an eyebrow, "I don't know what you mean." He waved his hands in front of his face, dissipating the smoke that began to curl around his head.

 _"_ _I do not know what I mean either. It is a nioi I do not recognize,"_ she explained, raising her head up again. _The Magala!_ Zim realized. That must be the scent she detects. _"What is your name, brave hunter?"_ she said after a moment of thought.

She lied down once more, curling her tail around her body. Her head hovering over Zim's. "I am known as Zim," he answered. She nodded slightly. "And you?" Zim asked, finally sheathing his weapon. It no longer looked as if the monster wished to fight.

 _"_ _I am the bringer of shi… death. I am known by many names, but you may refer to me as Fuun,"_ she said. Her chest puffed out in pride, before she flinched from the pain. Blood dripped from the cracks in her armor. She lapped at her wound, quelling the blood flow, but made note not to move so suddenly again.

"Fuun?" Zim muttered to himself before addressing the monster, "Well, Fuun… what are you doing? I was sent along with my… hunting party to keep you away from Dundorma."

 _"_ _I was sent by my aniki to raze the human city to the ground. He is very okotta… angry at the ningen right now,"_ she explained.

 _Angry? Her aniki… she can't mean a white Fatalis, can she?_ Zim pondered quietly for a moment. "What have we done to inspire your brother's wrath?" he asked. _She called him Kami, what does that mean?_

The Fatalis looked confused for a moment before she finally said, _"Remove your helmet, hunter."_ Zim raised an eyebrow, but slowly unclasped his helmet and removed it from his head. He shook black hair out of his face as his emerald green eyes met her crystalline ones.

She leaned down again and snorted smoke in his face. He coughed slightly, letting down his defenses. Her tongue darted from her maw and licked at his face before she retreated out of range. He stared blankly at her, wiping away the drool from where she had licked him.

She seemed to think for a moment before she asked, _"Why would you rope yourself in with the other ningen?"_

"What?"

 _"_ _You do not smell ningen, nor do you taste ningen,"_ she gestured to the deceased halves of Alexander with her tail. _"You are… different somehow. Almost monstrous,"_ she explained.

 _Monstrous?_ the thought echoed in Zim's mind, reverberating against his soul. _Is that the source of my strength? My skill? Am I really… part monster?_ He collapsed to the ground, teeth grinding against each other. Fuun watched him in confusion, unsure why he was reacting this way.

 _"_ _Why do you hunt with the ningen?"_ she asked.

"Because it is what I've always done. I was born to humans, I lived with humans, I gained rank among humans. Why should I not rope myself with them?" Zim growled.

Fuun shook her head, _"Because then I'd have to destroy you. My aniki is absolute and either I destroy the city or I die trying."_

"What has angered your aniki so much that he wants you to sacrifice yourself? I may be different, but I am not the strongest hunter in Dundorma. If you lay waste to the city, you will surely die," Zim said.

 _"_ _Then that is my fuun. My fate. My aniki feels the need to remind ningen that_ _ **they are not Kami!**_ _And If I am to die serving him, then so be it,"_ said somberly. She was no longer sure if she could best Zim in a fight, let alone someone stronger than him.

"What does Kami mean?" Zim asked.

 _"_ _God."_

Zim thought for a moment. He glanced at Ruby to see her shuffle in her sleep, she was still alive. "Is there any way I can end this peacefully? I do not doubt either of our strengths, but I am not confident in either of our abilities to defeat the other. And if you win, you will be met with more opposition than I put up. And if I win…" he did not finish his thought. _The void would only consume more of me._

Fuun thought for a long time. Zim waited, still standing. He did not put his helmet back on. Eventually, Fuun let out a loud sigh, fire licking her maw, _"I am afraid that I have no choice. I cannot disobey my aniki, let alone Kami. Unless…"_

"Unless what?"

 _"_ _Unless I can present him an offer of good faith. I will tell him that I encountered a hunting party. I slaughtered them all, but I was too weak to lay waste to the city,"_ she explained. Zim's eyes narrowed and risked a glance at Ruby.

"But you can lie to your aniki? What of me, and her?" Zim said, gesturing towards Ruby.

 _"_ _I can lie to my aniki, yes. You and… the ningen can leave. I will tell him about you and when I have recovered my strength, he will order me to come back,"_ she explained.

"I'm not sure I want your aniki to know about me," Zim said nervously.

 _"_ _He will find out eventually. If I were to fail, he would fly out himself. And not even your strongest ningen could slay me. When I come back, meet me here and we can speak again,"_ she said.

"What if I the guild sends more hunters?" Zim asked.

 _"_ _Then I will slaughter them as I did these ones until only you and I remain,"_ she growled. She hesitated before leaving, _"Take off your armor, Zim."_

"Excuse me?" Zim said, holding a hand up to his ear.

 _"_ _Your armor. Give it to me. I will hold it in good faith and bring it back when I return, to make sure you actually show up,"_ she smirked to the best of her ability. Zim growled to himself but followed her command. And then he watched her fly away, his armor clutched in her talons.

 _"_ _Goddamn it,"_ he snarled. A different balloon descended from the sky and landed in the courtyard. Zim grabbed Ruby and slung her over his shoulder. He gave a passing glance to Alexander's deceased form, but could not pick him up while holding on to Ruby. The guild would have to come back for him.

XXX

 **This was a long one! And a fun one to type. The plot thickens! Is Zim really part monster, or is there some other explanation? Could it have something to do with Specter? And the Fatalis, Fuun, is surprisingly agreeable, but how trustworthy is she? And, of course, Rose, Eve, and Wolf have all seen Specter and Rose and Eve are about to learn of Zim's high rank status. This can't end well for Zim. Or can it? Stay tuned to find out.**

 **On a side note, I apologize to those of you who do speak Japanese. I am still but a learner so I had to use a dictionary for spelling and words I didn't know. I hope I didn't butcher the language too much… the grammar is probably awful… For those of you who do not speak Japanese, here is a short list of what she is saying:**

Itai = hurts or "it hurts"

Baka = idiot or fool

Shinu = die

Awarena = pathetic

Mada Taizai! = Stay still!

Nani? = What?

Watashi wa kono yōna kyōryokuna aite o mitsukeru shita koto wa arimasen. Watashi wa anata no tsuyo-sa, ningen o ninshiki suru = I've yet to find such a strong opponent. I recognize your strength.

Oriru = get off

Watashi o rikai suru koto ga dekimasu ningen? = A human that can understand me?

Anata wa Nihongo ga wakaranai nodesu ka? = You do not know Japanese?

Omoshiroi = how interesting

 **There you go. Hopefully this little list will keep you all from becoming too confused. I would leave you all guessing, but I decided I didn't want you all relying on a translator (especially google translate, which butchers the language so badly…). Stay tuned (again)!**


	8. Chapter 8

Chapter 8 - Verschlimmbessern:

Author's Note:

 **The last chapter was a bit intense, this one I'm afraid may seem dull in comparison. But fear not, it is important. Zim arrives back in Val Harbor and has to explain why the Fatalis escaped and why he's missing his armor. I would like to make a note that when I had said Dundorma was close to Castle Schrade, I thought I was making that up… I had no idea that it's actually canon (I had forgotten to do my research). So, yeah, that's interesting… anyways, enjoy!**

XXX

 _Verschlimmbessern: To make something worse while trying to make it better._

Ruby came to slowly during the balloon ride back to Dundorma. Her blue eyes snapped open the moment she realized that she was moving, and in the air. Her head whipped back and forth, trying to determine where she was. Her eyes narrowed when they landed on Zim. "What happened?" she growled.

"You're lucky to be alive. That fireball knocked you unconscious and nearly killed you," Zim explained. She raised an eyebrow before noticing that Zim was only wearing a pair of boxers. She looked herself over and noticed that she too was only in her undergarments.

Zim noticed her distress and explained before she could cry out, "Your armor was damaged beyond repair by the fireball. I had to remove it to keep you from suffocating. I took a lifepowder, but you stayed unconscious."

She seemed to calm down, but she remained angry. "Where are the others?" she growled.

Zim darkened considerably. "Alexander is dead, bisected by the Fatalis. Elm abandoned the quest," he snarled. Ruby flinched at his tone, but quickly grew even angrier.

"He _abandoned_ us? Where is the Fatalis? Did we win?" she questioned.

" _I_ fought the Fatalis alone," Zim growled, nearly revealing the Fatalis' name, but managed to stay his tongue. "And I managed to drive it away, but I sacrificed my best armor to do so."

Her eyes widened, " _You_ drove it away? Alone? I don't believe you."

"Believe it," Zim hissed, staring at her, gaze penetrating her soul, "I am a much better hunter than my rank shows. I should've fought the Fatalis alone, and if I had G-Rank equipment, I could've slayed the monster… by myself."

She looked upon him in a new light. Although she still felt angry at being shown up by a lowly high rank, she felt a twinge of admiration. Zim was a far superior hunter than her and deep down, she knew this. Even if she refused to ever say it aloud. "Damn, high rank. I thought the Chancellor was making it all up, just so we could have four people on the hunt."

Zim snorted, "Sometimes I wish it was all made up." He looked down at his feet. He was sitting down in the basket, his legs spread outward. "He had assured me that I wasn't really needed, I was just a precaution. If I had known Alexander wasn't up to the task… I would've been less concerned about myself and more concerned about you all."

 _Wish it was all made up?_ Ruby pondered to herself. She let out a laugh, "You're something else, high rank. You make it sound like you could protect us, like we _needed_ your protection."

Zim smirked slightly before saying, "Clearly Alexander needed it." He raised his head to stare into her soul once again, smirk gone from his face, "I could've told you all to stay back. I could've told you to wait until I had its sole attention. Then the only one hurt would be me."

Ruby shivered from his gaze, suddenly uncomfortable. "You couldn't take a hit, not with high rank armor… although, somehow I doubt you'd even get a scratch. I mean, look at you. There are no mars on your body, even now…" she trailed off when she realized she was admitting to have been looking him over.

Zim seemed unfazed. "It doesn't matter. It's too late, anyways. Alexander is dead," he muttered. The atmosphere grew heavy as the two became silent.

"Well, shit," Ruby eventually said. Zim raised an eyebrow. "I didn't think Elm would turn out to be a coward. I think I'm going to beat the shit right out of him, might get him expelled from the guild," she continued, rubbing her hands together.

Zim snorted, "You can have turn after I get my dues. You were unconscious, he abandoned me to my face. Although I can't promise there'll be anything left for you to beat."

Ruby stared at him for a moment before bursting out laughing once again, "You're alright, high rank… Zim." They shared a smirk before going silent.

The balloon ride was quiet from that point onwards. Eventually, they made it back to Dundorma. The Chancellor greeted them when they touched down and immediately hustled them away. They headed up into the great hall where they were greeted by the massive Wyverian known as the Great Elder.

The Great Elder had very little power when it came to the guild. Most of the decisions were made by the Guild Master, but he seemed to not be present. The Great Elder was a very respected source of knowledge and wisdom, however. He sat on a massive throne, a large staff held in his hands.

The Chancellor walked up next to the throne and turned to face Ruby and Zim. "We had feared the worst when Elm came back without his team. All he said was that Alexander and Ruby were dead and Zim didn't run," he said. Zim ground his teeth together at the mere mention of Elm.

"However, we can see that report wasn't fully accurate. Alexander is dead, yes? But Ruby and Zim are both very much alive. So tell me, brave hunters, what happened?" the Chancellor continued. Elm was not present, he must've ran away. Zim made a mental note to hunt him down.

Zim took a breath and stepped forward, "Alexander fell to the Fatalis, yes. Ruby was knocked unconscious and Elm abandoned the quest," he explained, Ruby looked down at her feet, slightly embarrassed about being knocked unconscious. "I fought the Fatalis, but I was unable to slay it."

The Chancellor nodded and the Great Elder lifted his massive staff and slammed it down on the ground. "Brave indeed young hunter. Remind me, who are you?" the Great Elder's voice boomed, echoing throughout the hall.

Zim bowed slightly, "I am Zim, Great Elder. A high rank hunter."

"A high rank? And you fought a Fatalis on your own?" the massive Wyverian asked, leaning forward in his chair to get a better look at the smallish human. He was much, much larger than even the tall Chancellor. He was nearly as tall as the Fatalis when standing on her hind legs.

Zim nodded. The Great Elder raised a hand to his chin thoughtfully. "Where is your armor, hunter?"

Zim did not falter, "I discovered after watching Alexander die and Ruby being knocked unconscious that my high rank armor was not going to save me. So I ditched it to gain more speed. I'm afraid that it toppled down the mountain from the fight."

The Great Elder nodded thoughtfully and said no more. "Zim, Ruby, Dundorma thanks you for your effort. However, because the beast was not slain, we have no knowing when it shall be back! We will remain on high alert for the next several days, waiting for the beast to return. And when it does, we will call upon you once more, Zim, to fight the monster!" the Chancellor called out.

Zim bowed again. The Chancellor continued, "Recognizing your achievement and our dependency on your skill, we grant you a raise in your hunter rank. Zim… are you ready to become a G-Rank hunter?"

Zim's breath hitched. _A G-Rank hunter?_ the thought penetrated him to the core. Of course he wanted to be a G-Rank hunter. Ever since he moved to Val Harbor for his mission he had heard of the legendary skills of the G-Rank hunters. He had long wondered if they were better than him. He had so desperately wanted to become a G-Rank hunter, proving that he was the best of the best.

 _Why would you rope yourself in with the other ningen?_

Fuun… she had seemed so confused that someone like him would side with the humans. Almost as if he was supposed to be a monster. Circumstances had changed his fate and he had been lending his strength to the humans. _This is the void I've been feeling,_ Zim realized. He _wasn't_ supposed to help the humans.

"I… am grateful for the opportunity to hunt as a G-Rank," Zim said. He didn't have the mental fortitude to turn down the offer. His pride prevented it. _I've roped myself with them already, why should I bother refusing?_

"Because of your advanced skill, we've already decided to place you as G-Rank number ten. Congratulations, Zim, you are now recognized as the tenth best hunter in the world. And if the Fatalis comes back, and you manage to slay it, we have no doubt you'll rise even above number one!" the Chancellor smiled. The Great Elder slammed his staff on the ground once again, the sound echoed throughout the hall.

The Wyverians present burst into applause. "Does this mean my mission is over?" Zim asked, ignoring the applause. He did not feel like celebrating. He felt more like he betrayed Fuun.

"Indeed it does," the Chancellor nodded, not taking notice of the lack of joy in Zim's eyes. "We'll be helping you move from your low rank house to a G-Rank one here in Dundorma. Please pack up and be ready to move by noon tomorrow."

XXX

Zim walked up to his home. Soon to be former home. It was… surreal. He remembered the first day he moved into the home. He had taken only his item box, nothing else. He had needed nothing else. He was supposed to be a low rank hunter, he shouldn't have had anything.

But he brought his item box anyways. No one ever noticed so the guild never complained. And now he was moving again. 'Twas the life of a hunter, he supposed. _I'm finally G-Rank,_ he smiled to himself. But _her_ words still rung in his ears. Perhaps he should've passed on the offer…

He took a deep breath and pushed open the door. "Blast, start packing. We're moving to Dundorma," he commanded. He shut the door behind him and froze. He saw Wolf, Rose, and Eve loitering around his home. The Magala was still asleep on the floor. _What was I going to do with him again?_ Zim thought to himself before his thoughts turned back to his former hunting group.

Blast stepped forward and rubbed the back of his neck sheepishly, "They sort of barged in, nya." Zim shut his eyes and took a deep breath. _In… and out_ , he repeated to himself as he breathed an annoyed sigh.

He glared at Wolf before turning to the other two. Before he could speak, Eve shouted out, "We know you're a high rank hunter, Zim," she said accusingly.

"We know that you were sent undercover to help train new hunters," Rose said softly. Wolf said nothing, for Zim was already aware of him knowing his secret.

"I'm a G-Rank hunter now," he puffed out his chest slightly in pride. "My mission is over. I'm moving to Dundorma to help protect it."

The trio shared a look. It didn't matter that they knew anymore. Wolf shrugged, but remained silent. "What about this… _thing?_ " Eve hissed.

"What about it?" Zim growled. He marched across the small one-room home and towered over Eve. She stood and evened the difference between their heights, but she blanched when she saw the change that had happened to Zim.

"Zim?" Rose said cautiously, for she was now close enough to notice the difference in Zim as well.

"What?" he growled, turning his head slightly to glare at Rose. She immediately flinched away from his gaze. He took note of her retreat and his sharp eyes softened slightly. But the glare returned full-force when Eve began to speak.

"What happened to you?" she said.

"I have no idea what you mean. I am the same as I always was," Zim said. He was slightly confused by both Rose's and Eve's reactions.

"Your eyes," Rose said quietly. Wolf raised an eyebrow, but did not move from his leaning position next to Zim's item box. He had no idea what was going on.

"My eyes?"

"They're red, Zim" Eve explained. Zim took a step backwards in confusion. "And the whites around your eyes are no longer white. They're a… purplish black color." Zim took another step back, nearly stepping on the little Magala.

The Magala clearly felt Zim's closeness and started to stretch. It let out a yawn, opening its mouth wide, letting Wolf see all of its teeth. It shook itself and, seemingly unperturbed by the number of strangers in the room, leaped at Zim, digging its sharp claws in his back.

Only the Magala could not find a grip. Its little claws, as sharp as they were, were unable to penetrate Zim's skin. The monster slid down Zim's back, small sparks erupting from the small claws scratching down his back. The Magala landed on the floor in a heap. It stood back up on four legs and shook itself, confused as to what happened. But it seemed to shrug it off as it wandered away.

Zim backpedaled, rearing from what had just happened to him. He knew that the Magala's claws were sharp enough to pierce the wooden walls, and yet they failed to go through is skin. _What does that mean?_ Zim's mind was unable to comprehend what had happened. "Blast, do we have a mirror?" he eventually said.

Blast shook his head, hesitated, and then clicked his claws together in what Zim assumed was the Palico equivalent of a snap. He snatched a bowel from near his bed and went to the small sink near the back of the home. The humans heard water rushing as the Palico filled the bowel with water and presented it to Zim.

Zim brought the bowel up to his face and gaze at his reflection. He hands shook when he laid eyes on himself. His eyes had indeed turned red and his sclera had turned a dark, dark purple. The bowel clattered to the ground, spilling water everywhere. Zim bared his teeth, which had elongated slightly into fangs, and he spoke lowly, "Stab me."

Rose made a small noise signaling her confusion, but Eve pulled her hunting knife from its sheath. "I'd never thought you'd ask," she said sarcastically. Wolf just raised an eyebrow from where he was standing, deciding it was better to remain out of this one.

The hunting knife glinted in the dull light of the small home. Eve flipped it around so it pointed directly at Zim's bare chest before she plunged it into his skin. The blade grated on the tough outer shell and bounced off with a display of sparks. Eve cried out in surprise as the knife was wrenched from her hand, leaving a bloody mark in the palm of her bare hand where she held the weapon, and spun in the air before lodging itself in the wall.

Zim collapsed to the ground, defeated and utterly confused. His skin seemed to be impenetrable. _What in the world happened to me?_ Zim thought. "Zim?" Eve finally said, the shock wearing off. Zim looked up at her, but did not stand. "What are we going to do?"

"We?" he said, raising an eyebrow at Eve. In his eyes, it was only him. _He_ was the one who had changed. _He_ was the G-Rank hunter.

"Yes we! Do you really think we'll be sitting this one out?" she paused for a moment before smirking at Zim, "If you don't, we'll tell the guild about your new pet."

Zim's eyes blazed as he shot upwards. He grabbed Eve by the neck and easily hoisted her up a few feet off the ground. She cried out, but it turned into a choke. Wolf pulled his greatsword off of his back, ready to defend himself, even if he knew it would have no effect on Zim. "What if I were to just kill you all now?" Zim growled, red eyes blazing.

Rose jumped to her friend's defense, grabbing Zim's arm. "Stop, stop! Please, just stop!" she cried out, trying to tear Zim away from Eve. Eventually Zim dropped the girl he was holding and turned to glare at Rose. She gulped and took a step backwards, hitting the wall of the small home. Eve coughed a few times before struggling to her feet.

"Very well. I will let you accompany me, but be warned," Zim hissed, " _You will follow my orders_. Is that clear?" Rose and Eve nodded rapidly while Wolf sheathed his weapon. "Good. Now, help me pack up. The movers are coming tomorrow at noon and I'm not sure if we'll be back by then."

"Back from where?" Rose asked as Zim walked towards his item box and dug through it to find a set of armor to wear.

"Bherna," he said, slipping on his Rathian mail.

XXX

The ride to Bherna was thankfully short. Although it was still freezing, Zim's Rathian armor was well insulated. Wolf, Rose, and Eve all huddled on the opposite side of the balloon, their armors not thick enough to keep out the cold. Blast had stayed behind to help move Zim's stuff. Not that he had much to move. The Magala had fallen asleep in a large backpack that Zim wore. He didn't trust any of his companions to keep the Magala safe.

The Balloon landed slowly. The three low rank hunters threw themselves off of the balloon, glad to be able to feel their fingers once again. The pilot cursed at them and Zim chuckled as he too stepped off the balloon. Zim waited as the trio came to their senses and Eve said, "Where are we going?"

"To meet a friend," Zim explained and began leading the trio through the village. The Wycademy loomed in the distance, still in the same state of disrepair as when Zim was hear a week ago. The village was looking much better, however. Most of the buildings seemed to be finished, though the massive blade of the unidentified monster had not been moved.

Zim marched through the village until he was stopped by a smallish Palico with a white coat. "Teishi! Stop where you are! Where are you all going?" the Palico cried out. He stood in front of the group, blocking them from entering the main village.

Zim raised an eyebrow, "I am a hunter with the guild, here to speak to Malakai. Who are you?"

"A hunter, eh? My name is Neko! I'm afraid Malakai isn't taking any visitors from the guild at the moment," the Palico said, crossing his arms.

"I'm not here on guild business. Malakai is a friend," Zim sighed.

"A nakama, huh?" Neko said, putting a paw against his chin.

"Zim?" a new voice cut in. Malakai had seen the commotion at the gate and had gone to investigate.

"Malakai," Zim greeted. The two G-Rank hunters shared a smirk before Malakai turned to Neko.

"Let them in, he's a friend. And I assume the ones behind you are company?" Zim nodded at the question.

Neko stood aside and let Zim and his companions through. Rose stopped and addressed Neko, "Hey, what language are you speaking?" she asked.

The little Palico smiled and said, "Nihongo! It's a wonderful language, nya? Flows off the tongue!" Rose nodded, tucking the fact away for later. Despite the frigid temperature of the balloon ride, Bherna looked beautiful from the air and she figured she might want to come back here.

Zim froze when he heard the word Nihongo. Fuun flashed in his mind, _the cat knows it too?_ Malakai noticed that Zim had stopped and he stopped and turned to face the other hunter, "Is something wrong?"

"A story for later, I'm afraid," Zim mumbled and kept moving forward. Malakai once again took the lead and the low rank trio fell in behind Zim, trying to not get left behind. They arrived at a house. Malakai pushed the door open and walked in, the other four following him.

The house was slightly larger than Zim's former home, but not quite as extravagant as one would expect the number two hunter in the world to have. There were several closed doors, one of which Zim assumed to be the Malakai's bedroom. Malakai gestured for the three low rank hunters to fight over the couch while he and Zim took chairs.

"I don't get many guests," Malakai explained when he saw Wolf sitting on the floor, pouting as Eve stuck her tongue out childishly at him. "I heard you made G-Rank, and for scaring off a Fatalis none-the-less!" Malakai addressed Zim.

The low ranks' eyes widened in surprise. He had told them that he had made G-Rank, but they had no idea that he had fought a Fatalis. "A Fatalis? Don't tell me you were alone, Zim," Rose said. Wolf let out a long impressed whistle while Eve remained silent.

Zim snorted, "I didn't kill it, though." He shook his head, "Look, I have to know if you can keep a secret."

"Depends," Malakai said, leaning back into his chair. He figured that Zim wasn't here to talk about his promotion.

"On what?" Zim growled.

"On the severity of the secret," Malakai said.

"It's less than legal…" Zim trailed off.

"So illegal, then," Malakai smirked. Zim nodded hesitantly. The three low ranks watched the exchange in silence. "I'm not obligated to tell the guild anything. One of the perks of being a G-Rank hunter, they don't own you anymore."

"So you can keep a secret?"

"I doubt you did anything morally reprehensible, Zim. I don't give a damn about the guild's laws, to a certain extent. So yes, I can keep a secret," Malakai sighed. He reached into his pocket and pulled out a pack of cigarettes and a few matches. He lit one and offered the pack and matches to Zim.

Zim shook his head so Malakai turned to the low ranks. Wolf accepted the pack and lit one for himself, as did Eve, but Rose just passed the pack back to Malakai. He stuffed it back into his pocket and waited for the spare matches to come back as Zim began to speak.

"I didn't actually drive off the Fatalis," Zim admitted.

Malakai blew smoke from his mouth and said, "So Dundorma is still in danger?"

"Not immediate danger. What I mean is that I didn't drive the monster off, I convinced her to leave," Zim said.

Malakai raised an eyebrow, "Her?"

"She called herself Fuun."

"She spoke to you? And you to her?" Malakai leaned forward, breathing out smoke again.

"Aye, I did," Zim answered. "She spoke a language she called Nihongo, but eventually switched over to English."

"Ah, so that's why Neko got that reaction out of you."

Zim smirked, "I was just surprised. She said that the language was for her and her older brother. She called him _God_ , so I assume she means a white Fatalis."

"And she is still alive?" Malakai asked.

"Yes, and coming back. I told her that I would meet her alone to talk again. I think she might be bringing her brother with her," Zim looked down at his feet, "I'm not sure if I can talk him down."

Malakai breathed out again, thoughtfully. Smoke curled around his head as he pondered the next course of action. "We'll burn that bridge when we get to it. A more pressing matter is how you were able to talk to her. You said that she spoke in English?"

"Not originally, like I said. But she seemed surprised that I could talk to her," Zim said, "She said that I didn't smell like a human, nor did I taste like one."

"She tasted you?" Wolf asked, coughing slightly from the smoke. Eve chuckled as Rose hit him in the back in an attempt to help him breath correctly again.

"And no one else in my party seemed to understand her," Zim said, ignoring Wolf. He left out the part where Alexander died, Elm ran, and Ruby was knocked unconscious.

Malakai nodded thoughtfully before saying, "Well… why do you think you were able to understand her?"

"I haven't a clue… however, I think that it may have something to do with _this,_ " Zim said, removing his helmet and standing. He walked closer to Malakai, who remained sitting, and his bright red eyes met Malakai's darker red. "You have red eyes too, so I thought you might know what's going on."

Zim was unable to see the grin that presented itself on Malakai's face, as his mouth was covered by cloth. "My eyes changed color because of the armor I'm wearing. If I were to remove it, my eyes would go back to their normal color," Malakai explained.

Zim sighed and walked back over to his chair, sitting down once again. "The whites of your eyes have turned black too, and you aren't wearing Nargacuga armor… I'm hesitant to say this, but… well… it looks like the physical symptoms of the frenzy virus."

Zim's eyes widened and he thought back to the frenzied Congalala he had thought. Its eyes had turned just like his did! "I thought the virus affected humans differently than monsters. I thought that we were partially immune to the effects and that they wore off after a while," Zim darkened.

"We know little to nothing about the virus, hunters may have just been getting lucky until now," Malakai said, leaning back into his chair. He took a deep breath and said, "I doubt anything less than a prolonged exposure could've done this to you."

Zim gulped slightly before pulling the backpack off of his back. "This is the illegal part I was talking about," Zim explained before pulling the little Magala out of the pack. The Magala was still asleep, but it shifted slightly in Zim's hands.

Malakai didn't panic, though his eyes did widen. The other three hunters, despite already knowing of the Magala's existence, flinched when it left the backpack. "I thought I had smelled a monster…" Malakai mumbled to himself. "This is certainly against guild policy, however, because I did promise, I will say nothing to the guild."

"I saw an infected Congalala a few weeks ago and the Magala burst from its chest. It latched onto me and I decided against killing it," Zim admitted. He did spend several hours with the Magala on his back, it must've been trying to infect him the entire time.

"The virus has varying incubation periods. It must've become active not that long ago," Malakai noted. "Not to mention its lethality towards other monsters…"

"There has to be something that I can do," Zim said. Malakai blew out one more time before extinguishing the dud in a nearby ashtray. He pulled out the pack again and lit another cigarette.

"There is a village called Cathar located on a peak not far from Heaven's Mount. There is a massive door somewhere in the village that leads to a sacred place called the Sanctuary. The Sanctuary is said to be the place where the first frenzy outbreak was beaten back thousands of years ago," Malakai explained.

"The door is closed at all times, but it is still possible the cause of the virus has resurfaced there. I'm not sure what you'll find, but I suggest you go and take a look," Malakai finished. Zim nodded, stuffing Specter back into the backpack and standing. He nodded his thanks to Malakai and he left the house, the three low ranks following behind.

Malakai breathed out more smoke as a door opened and a woman stepped into the living room area. "You still think he's the one?" Dr. Steele asked, crossing her arms.

"I'm more sure of it now than I ever have been," Malakai said, extinguishing the cigarette. "He's got the virus, which is more than either of us has been able to accomplish. Now we wait to see if he can speak to _it_ and overcome the virus."

XXX

"I'm going to the Sanctuary alone," Zim explained as he stepped into the balloon.

"We've gone this far, you can't just leave us behind!" Eve cried out in indignation.

"Silence!" Zim growled. "I let you tag along because you forced my hand. I don't know what's at the Sanctuary, but it's likely to be hostile. I am not going to risk you all upsetting whatever _it_ might be."

He watched the angry expression vanish from Eve's face and be replaced by a saddened one. Zim rolled his eyes and said, "I'm taking the Magala with me, but I have a special task for you three." Eve brightened at that and Rose and Wolf gave him their full attention. "I need you to go up to the Wycademy and do a little reconnaissance work."

They saluted and he chuckled slightly at their enthusiasm. "I'll likely be a few days. If I don't come for you in three days… well, go back to Val Harbor."

XXX

 **There was a lack of action in this one, but I think that this chapter was just as important. So, Zim's been infected with the frenzy virus… I wonder what that means for our dear hunter? What will he find in the Sanctuary (that's a stupid question, I know)? What was Dr. Steele doing at Malakai's place? What the hell were they talking about? Stay tuned until next time to find out!**


	9. Chapter 9

Chapter 9 - Luftschloss:

Author's Note:

 **So I would like to start with an apology. I had midterms this week (on Wednesday, of all days) so I had spent quite a bit of time (probably over-preparing) for my exams. And some of them were a joke (like Philosophy, good god) but others were… well I can't think of an appropriate analogy that doesn't involve taking it up the ass. I'm a physicist, yes, but a theoretical one… can you imagine how much I struggle with mechanics? A lot. Anyways, midterms were only half my struggle because (on my study breaks) I did write this chapter. After I finished the midterms and came back to edit… it was awful. I had to rewrite the entire chapter.**

 **Now on to the fun stuff. There's going to be some more German in this chapter than usual (and a heavy accent, so be ready for that). Now, I have only just started learning Japanese, but I know quite a bit in German. Am I fluent? Mostly (I say that because I had to rely on a dictionary for this chapter more than I want to admit… it's been a while since I had actually used German conversationally). With that being said, please enjoy!**

XXX

 _Luftschloss: An unrealistic dream. Literally an air castle._

The trip to Cathar had been particularly taxing on the young hunter. Cathar was very close to Heaven's Mount, but on a much higher, separate peak. The village was far above the clouds in temperatures even lower than Bherna's. Zim's Rathian mail helped to a degree, but did nothing for the thin air. He was having trouble breathing.

Even when he landed in Cathar, the air was still thin and the temperatures were still freezing. He thanked Kami that he grew up in Moga, a place where being able to hold one's breath for hours was essential. He was used to the suffocating feeling and could partially ignore it… though it did nothing for the low pressure, when he was used to the high pressures of underwater combat.

So he stumbled his way through the village, trying to identify which one would be the Grand Guru, the one who would be able to open the gate for him. The villagers gave him wary looks, but mostly went about on their daily work. The majority of the villagers seemed to be farming. None of them looked like they could be the Grand Guru.

Zim kept wandering throughout the village, arms clenched tightly around his chest. Eventually, he ended up upon a long bridge leading out to a separate peak. Taking a look around, he noted that everyone was staring at him again. He straightened his back, reminding himself that he was a hunter, a G-Rank one at that, and could practically do as he pleased.

With that in mind, he stepped onto the rickety-looking, wooden bridge. The bridge creaked and sagged under his weight, no longer swinging back and forth in the breeze. He continued across the old bridge at a slow pace, careful not to break any of the planks. The bridge looked old, but some of the planks had definitely been replaced. _At least they keep it well-maintained,_ Zim said to himself as he finished crossing the bridge.

"Ah, welcome to the shrine, young hunter," an elderly Wyverian said. He sat, cross-legged, on a small outcrop of rock. His eyes were closed and he seemed to be meditating. Zim looked around, but could not find any sign of a door. Only rock. "I'm afraid what you seek is not here, young hunter," the Guru chuckled.

"Of course it isn't," Zim grumbled to himself. He shifted the backpack he was wearing, being careful not to wake the Magala within. His action did not go unnoticed by the Guru. "So where is it then?" Zim asked, trying his best to stay calm and respectful. Even now he could feel the frenzy welling up inside of him.

But it never exploded. This place, the shrine, inspired calmness within him. He was grateful, of course, but knew that the frenzy was still there. "Why do you seek the Sanctuary?" the Guru asked.

"I'm investigating the source of the current frenzy virus outbreak. Hopefully, I'll be able to quell it before it becomes an epidemic," Zim answered truthfully. The Guru likely already knew why he was here, it was pointless to lie to him.

"But not sanctioned by the Guild?" the Guru asked.

"No."

"Then for selfish reasons you seek the Sanctuary, hmm?" the Guru's eyes opened slowly and he readjusted his sitting position to something more comfortable.

"Will the door not open for selfish reasons?" Zim asked sarcastically. Despite his anger rising, it was becoming harder and harder to feel the virus within him. Even with the Magala so close to him once more. _Is the atmosphere starting to get to me?_ Zim wondered when he placed a hand against his head. He was starting to become dizzy.

"It will open for whoever I tell it to open for," the Guru explained. _In other words, no,_ Zim growled internally. The Guru chuckled again, "I never said that. I was just wondering if you were going to tell me about the monster on your back. Now… what kind of hunter carries a dangerous monster in a backpack?"

Zim glared at the Guru but never considered the idea of drawing his weapon. Nor even striking the Guru. The shrine was definitely suppressing the frenzy… and his violent nature as well. "I didn't think that it mattered," Zim said.

"You admit to not thinking?" the Guru asked, raising an eyebrow at the hunter.

"I admit to thinking that you wouldn't care," Zim responded smoothly, despite him struggling to stay conscious internally. It was becoming difficult to even stand. He needed to get to a higher pressure area soon…

The Guru grinned and chuckled again, "Very good, very good. You are correct to a degree. I care not for the monster on your back, rather I care if you made such a decision on emotion alone. And I do not think that you did."

Zim nodded slowly, strain beginning to show on his face. "I have thought this through thoroughly…" he let out an audible grunt as he doubled over, clutching his head. He was fighting to stay on his feet now.

"I'm impressed, no one has ever been able to stand this long against it," the Guru mumbled as Zim fell to the ground, no longer able to stay on his feet. He felt his entire body become paralyzed.

"What are you doing to me?" Zim ground out. Now he was fighting to stay awake.

"A very strong sleep gas. It paralyzes first, then knocks you unconscious. Normal humans cannot take more than a few seconds against the gas, but hunters usually last a bit longer. But no one has lasted as long as you," the Guru explained.

The Guru stood from his sitting position and made his way over to the still conscious Zim. He caught the questioning look coming from the man, "Wyverians, such as myself, are immune to the gas. So I suppose you are the only human to have lasted this long."

Zim's eyes began to close, but he saw a few more Wyverians step from the shadows of the shrine and approach him. The Grand Guru seemed unconcerned by the new presences as he knelt down to Zim's level. Zim had rolled over to his back, not that he had much of a choice. And then everything went dark.

XXX

Three days had passed faster than Wolf, Rose, and Eve realized. Zim had yet to return. They had spent the three days doing as Zim had requested, observing the Wycademy and gathering information. They weren't sure why, but they did as he asked.

They might've gone a bit overboard in their assignments. Rose had disguised herself as a student and gone to several higher level classes. She was the closest in age to the students, so she took on that burden alone.

Eve had distracted herself by going through the library. She was awestruck by the immense size of the library and busied herself trying to find anything interesting. As a low rank hunter, she couldn't access the rarer, more important texts near the back of the library. But she did have access to the entire history of the guild, so she spent her time reading that.

Wolf had taken it upon himself to map out the Wycademy. He had walked all over the building, creating a mental map of the place. He would've joined Eve in the library, but he refused to spend his day reading. Exploring was more fun. He had also kept an eye on the headmaster, headmistress as he had found out, but she had done nothing of interest.

None of them had any idea why Zim had asked them to observe the Wycademy. They didn't know what they were looking for. Eve wasn't able to find anything more interesting in the library, Rose had been bored out of her mind in the classes, and Wolf was still unable to find the bathrooms.

They met back at Bherna when the three days were up. Rose, as a student in disguise, had slept in a dorm. Wolf went back to Bherna at the end of every day, renting a hotel room with the remainder of his last hunt's money. Eve never left the library for the full three days.

"So what have we got?" Wolf said when Eve and Rose walked into the room he had rented. They had met up as they were leaving the Wycademy and had walked to the small, half destroyed hotel together.

"The Wycademy is a bit bigger than the academy that we went to… and it's so much harder," Rose complained, sitting down on one of the beds in the room with a huff. She was so glad it was all over.

"I can tell you when the guild decided to create a separate category for brute wyverns," Eve deadpanned. All she had learned was useless history facts. She was fairly certain they were useless, at least.

"Well, fuck. It might've helped if he had given us a specific task to accomplish…" Wolf trailed off. His eyebrows drew closer together in confusion as he squinted at the window of the room. He walked closer to the window, confusion still evident on his face.

Rose watched him with a raised eyebrow, but Eve spoke up. "What are you doing?" Wolf only shushed her, causing her to roll her eyes, and stare out the window for several seconds.

He turned around and shrugged, "I had thought I saw a flash of red," he said. They learned during their stay that darkness enveloped Bherna very quickly. It was pitch black outside when it had been bright out just an hour ago.

The room was quiet for several moments before Rose pointed at the window, "There!" she cried out. Wolf immediately turned around, only to have something crash through the window and tackle him. Wolf was thrown to the ground.

Two more somethings burst through the broken window to attack Rose and Eve. Rose let out a scream as she leapt to the side, dodging her assailant. Eve pulled the weapon from her back and swung at her attacker.

Her eyes widened when she realized who was attacking her. It was a human, cloaked in black armor. It looked a bit like Malakai's armor… the attacker pulled a longsword from his back and parried her strike. The man, she assumed the attacker was a man, was wearing a mask that hid everything except the red glow of his eyes.

Wolf threw his attack off, a woman, and drew his greatsword. She drew a wicked-looking sword, a shield present on her other arm. Wolf smirked, she wouldn't be able to block his massive blade. He swung downwards, aiming to cleave her in half. He figured that only one of the assassins needed to survive. Rose would do a fine job keeping hers alive, meaning Wolf could just kill his assailant.

But the woman expertly dodged his attack and slashed at his side with her large knife. A burst of yellow lightning accompanied the splatter of blood as the knife tore through his armor and bit into his skin. Wolf felt his muscles start to relax against his will. _Paralysis!_ he growled internally. He couldn't let her hit him too many times... but on the bright side, she wasn't trying to kill him.

Rose kept screaming, it was all she could do as she rolled away from her frenzied attacker. Because she was posing as an academy student, she had neither a weapon nor armor with her. The attacker's red eyes unnerved her as she rolled from his dual blades. She wasn't fast enough. The sword cut into her shoulder and she felt her arm go limp. _Shit!_ she realized she couldn't move her arm at all. And the numbness was spreading through her system like a poison.

Eve was faring much better. She had taken her best weapon, a high powered charge blade, with her to Bherna and the shield was proving extremely effective against the longsword user. She blocked and struck at her attacker aggressively, hoping to finish him off so she could help Rose.

Wolf growled as the fast sword and shield user ducked under his blade and slashed at his legs. He collapsed, but did not stop trying to hit the attacker. She danced around his crazed strikes and pierced him directly in the chest. Her sword did not pierce deeply, but it was enough to spread the paralysis through his entire system.

His greatsword fell from his lax grip and he collapsed to the ground, not even able to convulse. The paralysis was meant for monsters, and worked extremely well against humans, it would seem. His attacker seemed to nod in satisfaction before turning to help her comrade attacking Eve.

Eve snarled as the woman slid under her guard, just as she did Wolf's, and struck at Eve's arm, trying to force her to drop her weapon. But the yellow lighting did not spark when she struck at Eve's arm. Eve grinned and kicked at her, sending her skidding away as she returned focus on her first attacker.

Rose rolled too close to the woman Eve sent sliding across the hardwood floor and ended up tripping over her. The woman wasted no time rolling over, pinning Rose underneath her, and stabbing her in the chest in the same fashion she had done to Wolf. Rose convulsed only once before lying still, staring helplessly at the cloaked attacker.

The other two attackers went over to aid their comrade, struggling to down Eve. She was vicious and fast, easily blocking her attacker and then cutting into him. No matter how many times she struck him, he did not go down. His armor was surprisingly thick, and her blade was having trouble going through the tough fabric.

The other two assassins tipped the favor, however, backing Eve into a corner. But the cornered cat fights twice as hard. With the solid surface behind her, she didn't have to worry about attacks from the rear, so her frontal defense was impenetrable. Even the woman with the sword and shield could not find a way around her.

The attackers were reduced to trying to wear her down, but they became tired in the process. The moment Eve noticed that the trio of assassins had slowed down, she stopped guarding and unleashed her full fury. She jammed her sword in her shield and shifted from the sword form of the charge blade into the almighty ax form.

She slammed the ax on the ground, causing a burst of fire and scattering her opponents. She swung the ax around, fire exploding constantly from the blade, keeping her enemies at bay. Finally, the woman got too close, she shifted the ax into a massive blade and slammed it down on the helpless woman. The female put up her shield, but the size and weight of the blade broke through the guard easily, slicing down her chest, ruining her armor, and searing the wound closed.

The assailant let out a scream and rolled around on the ground in pain. The man with the dual blades stepped out of his attack motion and went to his wounded ally's side. The man with the longsword didn't stop his attack, however. She felt the blade enter her chest, sliding up to the hilt.

Eve sucked in a deep breath before collapsing to her knees, fighting hard against the paralysis. The man with the dual swords immediately stood and turned on his comrade, reprimanding him, "You fool! We were supposed to take them alive!" His voice was a deep baritone, but ultimately soothing to Eve's ears.

"I'm sorry! You see what she did, I thought she was only a low rank hunter," the man growled in return. His voice grated on Eve's ears. Her charge blade shifted back to its sword and shield mode with the sword remaining sheathed inside of the shield.

She was losing blood and control over her limbs. She grasped the hilt of the weapon, causing the wielder of the weapon, who had not let go of the sword, to look down at her. She, who had also yet to let go of her weapon, pulled the blade free of her shield. With the last bit of her strength, she swung the sword at him.

He let go of his weapon and slapped her hand away from his heart, but her weapon still pierced his leg. He let out a scream as blood and fire burst from the wound. Eve smirked slightly as she fell forward, hitting the ground facedown, losing complete control and eventually passing out from the blood loss.

The man with the dual swords wrenched the blade free from his companion's leg, causing a fresh scream to leave his lips, "Don't be a pussy. It's what you deserve for possibly killing her!" The longsword wielder groaned, but glared at the man while clutching the bleeding wound.

"Shut up, both of you," the woman growled, getting up to her feet. She finished downing the potion her comrade had given her, causing the wound on her chest to disappear, but her clothes were still ruined and hanging open, causing the longsword wielding man to whistle at his comrade.

She glared at him, but considered the knife through his leg as enough punishment. She didn't bother trying to cover herself, however. "We got them, let's get back to the Wycademy."

XXX

Zim groaned as he rolled over. He was alive, but barely awake. His eyes fluttered open as he tried to regain his bearings. Whatever had happened, the Guru had only moved him. He could feel the backpack on his back and the Magala struggling within.

Heaving a sigh, he struggled to his feet, only wobbling slightly. He had accidentally rolled over onto his back, waking the Magala within the bag. He tore the bag off of his back and opened it. The Magala all but jumped out of the bag, desperate to be free from the oppressive space. Zim rolled his eyes as he watched the Magala tumble to the ground, its wings only barely helping it glide to the ground.

He tossed the bag aside, deciding he didn't need it any more. He suddenly collapsed to his knees. He gripped his head again, praying that it wasn't the sleeping gas again. He had just woken up! But it wasn't the sleeping gas. It was the virus.

He could feel it gathering and permeating within his mind once again. The frenzy, the aggression, the anger welled to the surface and Zim did all he could to beat it back down. The Shrine had definitely helped suppress the virus, but it did nothing to cure it. Whatever was in the Sanctuary was the key to curing the virus.

Zim took a look around once more, his eyesight clearing up and his head no longer pounding as hard. The virus was still in the back of his mind, but with no one else around, the frenzy didn't have anyone to lash out at. His eyes widened when he realized where he was.

He was in the basecamp at Heaven's Mount. But the path leading to the Mount was blocked off by a massive rock. Realization hit him. He had noticed a very similar rock the last time he had been at Heaven's Mount, only he was on the other side of it. He had thought the rock just blocked another path into the Mount… he had no idea that it blocked the path into the Sanctuary.

That had to be why he was on the other side of the rock. The Guru had knocked him out and brought him here. No one would find him. No one would come to pick him up. Reality set in. This was a one-way trip. If he didn't back out now, there was no coming back.

But that didn't make sense. Either the Guru didn't expect him to win… or the old Wyverian would instinctively know when he had won, and come and pick him up afterwards. _Either way, I should be able to find my way off this rock even without that damn Guru's help,_ Zim snarled internally.

He felt the frenzy blaze within him, straining to be free. He hadn't noticed it through his confusion, but he could _feel_ the source of the virus was near. The Magala seemed to know it too. It instinctively hid itself behind Zim, hoping the hunter would be able to protect it. Zim leaned down and picked the Magala up, _Specter,_ Zim said to himself. Why did he keep forgetting to call the monster by its name?

He helped Specter onto his shoulder where it stood, perched like a nightmarish parrot. Zim nodded to himself and walked a few steps, to make sure Specter could keep his balance as Zim moved and to make sure the Magala wasn't going to throw off his balance. Thankfully, neither happened and Zim was able to make his way across the bridge into the Sanctuary.

The bridge was made out of vines and roots, which trapped rocks to use as stepping stones. The bridge did not even budge under his weight. He breathed an internal sigh of relief. The last thing he needed was another questionably sound bridge.

Zim wandered into the Sanctuary, not sure what to expect. He could feel the mass of frenzy near him, but he wasn't sure where it was. The Sanctuary seemed to be a smallish arena, a large circular plateau with a single rock in the center. Zim immediately noted its strategic value in case there was a fight. _When there's a fight,_ Zim asserted to himself. He noted that the virus seemed to be so thick around the Sanctuary that no light could shine through the literal cloud of darkness.

He made his way around the rock and that's when he saw it. A literal mass of the frenzy virus. The black and purple disease hung in one area of the Sanctuary, shifting and churning. But Zim could see something _within_ the mass of frenzy. He couldn't quite make it out…

Until the monster shook the frenzy away from itself. The mass of the virus dissipated instantly revealing a great golden Magala, nearly double the size of the single adult Magala Zim had encountered. The massive monster rounded Zim, observing him, before leaping an immense distance into the sky. The beast flared its wings, revealing they glowed even when no light shone in the Sanctuary.

The Magala hung high in the air for a moment, allowing Zim to observe the beast. It looked quite similar to a regular Gore Magala, despite its golden coloring. If Zim had to venture a guess, he would think that this was simply an ancient Magala, not a completely different monster. The beast then hurled itself towards the ground, landing with a loud bang and a spray of earth.

It slid a few meters, its wings used like extra legs to keep it from sliding too far. The golden monster _glared_ at Zim and he realized the first difference between the Gore Magala and this one. This monster had _eyes,_ when the Gore Magala lacked anything that could be called such.

Zim was also aware that the Gore Magala had a pair of horns that acted as "feelers" to help it see. They were kept flat against their heads until they went into their frenzied state. And they popped up and glowed purple. The golden Magala before him had horns as well, except they were a brown color and stood straight up at all times.

Zim was no longer sure that this was just some ordinary Magala. Its scales were so brilliant. _Could it be…_ Zim pondered looking at the baby Magala and back at the staring golden Magala. _That you are meant to grow into that?_ Zim concluded.

 _"_ _Was ist der Mench hier?"_ the beast growled. Zim rolled his eyes, _yet another language I cannot understand._

"I'm guessing you're the one causing the epidemic," Zim said, hoping this monster knew English as well as Fuun did. The golden Magala reared back slightly, as if not expecting the hunter to be able to understand him. Its golden eyes narrowed as it leaned in to sniff at the hunter.

Its eyes widened when it recognized the scent of frenzy. _"Sie sind wahnsinnig?"_ it asked carefully. It then noticed the Magala riding comfortably on the hunter's shoulder. It leaned in to get a better look at the young Magala. Specter bared its little teeth at the adult monster and nearly fell off of the hunter's shoulder.

 _"_ _Englisch ... Ich hasse diese Sprache,"_ the monster growled before letting out a sigh. _"I hate your language, human. It sounds so… leise on mein tongue. But you haff one of mein Junge on your… shoulder."_ The monster had a heavy accent that wasn't present when Fuun spoke.

"Your young," Zim said, believing the monster had just said young with an e on the end. It wasn't a question, more of a request for clarification. The monster growled lowly, clearly annoyed with the human, though Zim couldn't tell why. Perhaps, much like the creatures who contracted the virus, the golden Magala had a short fuse.

 _"_ _Now is the vorst time, human. Mein Kumpel has just passed. Killed! In ze prime of his life by you… humans!"_ the monster roared, causing the ground to tremble and parts to light up in black and purple light. The light became brighter and brighter before the area encompassed by the lights shot upwards in a pillar of frenzy, as tall as Zim.

"Humans have been here before?" Zim asked. He was under the impression that no human had ever gone to the Sanctuary before. Or, at the very least, have not been here for a very long time. Which would be why there was a rock blocking the path to the Sanctuary.

 _"_ _Humans are here all ze time,"_ the Magala said, almost wistfully, before continuing with a bitter tone, _"Some make ze pilgrimage to vorship us. Zey see us as Gott, and pay homage to us. To keep ze frenzy away…"_

She paused for a moment to glare at Zim. The monster seemed to be pondering if it was worth continuing the story, or if it should just attack. But a glance at the little Magala that rode on his shoulders made the golden beast continue the story.

 _"_ _One day, not too long ago, a group zat had called zemselves the Knights of ze Volf had come to pay homage to us. Zey brought vith zem four new pupils, unbeknownst to ze Knights, zey vere Jägers hoping to bag zemselves a Gott,"_ the monster said, pain evident in its voice.

Zim's eyes widened and he shook with anger, the frenzy welling up inside of him. But his anger was not directed towards the hunters that would hunt under false pretenses, rather at himself. He had slaughtered one's mate. The Zinogres flashed in him mind.

 _"_ _I vas avay, spreading my hatchlings with ze frenzy, I could not save him. Ze Knights managed to fight ze Jägers off, but not before zey mortally vounded mein Kumpel. And here you are,"_ the monster hissed, _"Vith one of mein Junge. Vhy do you haunt me so?"_

"When did this happen?" Zim asked quietly. _An atrocity I know all too well…_ the thought echoed in Zim's head. It was getting easier to understand her as the red haze was starting to set in. He knew that it was the frenzy.

 _"_ _Hardly a veek ago,"_ the monster growled, _"Perhaps zhen tagen…"_ it trailed off. The golden Magala was not quite sure why the hunter seemed legitimately concerned. Then again, the scent of frenzy was strong on his breath, there was no telling what was going on in his head.

"That's about how long ago I found this," Zim gestured at the Magala. The Magala had no moved a single inch after it caught the scent of the golden Magala. Zim wasn't sure if it was fear or hostility.

 _"_ _Vhy are you here, hunter? I haff never met a human zat had contracted ze frenzy, despite ze many zat tried,"_ the monster said. It slowly lowered itself to a more comfortable laying position, it was sure the hunter was not a threat.

"I'm actually here about the virus," Zim admitted, "I'm here to cure it." The monster stared at him before bursting out laughing.

 _"_ _You cannot cure it, Dummköpfe,"_ the monster chuckled. Zim narrowed his eyes, not sure exactly what the monster had called him. _"Vhy vould you vant to cure ze frenzy?"_

"Is there some reason I wouldn't? You said that many have tried to contract the disease, why would they want this?" Zim asked, now confused. Malakai had said that the virus was lethal, but if he was the only human to contract it, how could he be sure that it would actually kill him?

The monster chuckled again, _"Ze frenzy is sacred, Dummköpfe. Vhy do you sink ze Knights of ze Volf have been trying to contract it for so long?"_

"So it's not going to kill me?" Zim asked, holding back a sigh of relief.

 _"_ _Maybe, maybe not,"_ the golden beast said nonchalantly. Zim immediately froze up, _I'm still screwed,_ he thought. _"It depends on if you can overcome it,"_ the monster finished, noticing Zim's panic.

"How do I overcome it?" Zim asked, desperate for an answer. The frenzy was starting to mess with his mind, throwing off his senses. The red haze wasn't going away and he could feel his other senses sharpening and then suddenly shutting off, before repeating over and over again.

 _"_ _I haff no idea…"_ the monster trailed off. _"Some monsters are able to do it, but I don't know how."_ Zim rolled his eyes, _that's real helpful._

"Will it or won't it kill me?" Zim asked, halting between each word, trying to get his question across as clearly as possible. The monster seemed to take offense as it just growled at him. "Right, whatever," Zim growled in response.

The two stared at each other in uncomfortable silence. The Magala on Zim's shoulders never relaxed, never moving even an inch. If it had eyes, it would likely be glaring at the golden monster. Finally, the monster let out a loud sigh and said, _"Vhy aren't you leaving?"_

"Do you wish me to leave?" Zim said softly. He had sat down while engaging in the staring contest and had placed the Magala in his lap.

 _"_ _I don't know…"_ the monster admitted. It was silent again for a time. The golden beast seemed to be thinking of what it wanted to say. _"Vhy did you keep him?"_ the monster asked eventually, shattering the silence.

The hunter's eyebrow raised in confusion. _Why did I keep him…_ he pondered to himself quietly The golden Magala seemed to be patiently waiting for his answer, but began tapping the hard ground with one of its talons after a few minutes of waiting. The monster clearly became impatient easily.

"At first I was solely curious. We knew almost nothing about Gore Magalas, so I had thought I could help by bringing a live specimen," Zim admitted. He flinched slightly when her blazing glare settled on him, clearly upset by his words. So he chose his next ones more carefully, "But I guess I realized what kind of a fate I'd be resigning him to. So I kept him… I had no real plan in mind."

 _"_ _And you know he's ze one who infected you?"_ the monster asked, calming down again.

"I wasn't aware I was infected until a few days ago, but I guess I don't hold any ill will towards Specter," Zim explained.

The monster burst out laughing, _"You named him Specter? Zat's not a good name."_

The hunter chuckled along with the monster, "I didn't actually name him, but it's all we could think of."

 _"_ _You should give him a good name in Deutsche, mein language,"_ the monster said thoughtfully, _"Perhaps Finsternis… Das würde ihn von unserer Sünde erinnern."_

"Finsternis is a bit of a mouthful…" Zim trailed off when he realized that the monster was no longer paying attention to him. It was staring directly at the little Magala, who was flinching under its gaze. As if the Magala could feel it. "By the way… what's your name? Mine's Zim," the hunter said out of the blue, hoping to draw the gold Magala back into the real world.

 _"_ _Ze humans called mein Kumpel Shagaru, however, zey referred to me as Nova,"_ she… Zim was finally able to place the golden Magala's gender, she said. She was definitely female. He still wasn't sure if she was a different species than the Magala in his lap, like the Basarios and the Gravios.

"Am I the first human that can understand you? I was told that the virus might be the reason I could understand…" Zim wasn't sure if he was supposed to call them monsters or not. And with Nova's short temper, he didn't want to find out.

 _"_ _Of course not, vhere do you sink I learned Englisch? Ze Knights of ze Volf can understand me to a degree. Is zis ze first time you haff spoken to a monster?"_ she asked. _Ah, so she does consider herself a monster. I wonder if she's just using that term for my benefit…_ Zim pondered.

"I guess that makes sense," Zim said, "And you aren't the first I have spoken to. I spoke to a Fatalis named Fuun."

 _"_ _A Fatalis? Describe for me a Fatalis, I may call it somesing different,"_ she said, leaning in slightly. She clearly did not leave the Sanctuary often. She likely hasn't left since her mate died, a silent vigil in his name.

Zim raised an eyebrow and thought carefully about how to describe Fuun. "A Fatalis is a massive dragon, even larger than yourself. Although it can crawl upon four legs, it prefers to fight on two. It has wings and can fly and massive fireballs spew from its maw. Its eyes are like green crystal and its scales are pure black."

Nova darkened immediately, _"You speak of Tod auf den Flügeln? Ze vinged demons zat destroy all in zeir pass? Ze ones who had ze gall! to turn us into zat…"_ she growled angrily, pausing to accent the word gall. She pointed her nose at Specter… Finsternis. Zim had yet to decide what to call the Magala.

 _What?_ was the only thought to go through Zim's head. _"You met ze black one, yes? I haff no problem vith her… but her brother, ze vite one, is ze problem!"_ the frenzy swelled around her as she lifted her head and let out a roar.

Zim clenched his jaw tightly, trying to resist the urge to echo the roar. The frenzy was changing him, and the longer he stayed, the worse it got. He was holding on purely because of his will. "What did he do to you?"

 _"_ _You should ask him yourself,"_ she growled. _"He calls himself Kami, Gott in his language. Zere can be only one, he sinks. Ve were more zan villing to live peacefully, but he sought ve vere too dangerous!"_ she stopped herself when she realized she was ranting.

She shook her head angrily as Zim processed the information he had been given. He wasn't sure what to think. But he figured he could ask Fuun the next time he saw her. But he wasn't sure if Kami would be there or not… _"Tell me, hunter… vat kind of man are you? Vill you stand for injustice? Vill you lay down your arms in ze vake of a greater foe? Or vill you fight? Vill you fight for me and mein Junge, or vill you roll over like ze dog your race has become?"_

"What are you saying?" Zim asked, confused by her outburst.

 _"_ _I'm asking if you vish to become a Knight of ze Volf,"_ she said, standing from her sitting position. _"Vith ze frenzy already apart of you, you could lead ze Knights against our enemies! Ve can crush ze guild and seek vengeance upon ze one who damned us!"_

Zim, inspired by her speech, could only nod in agreement. He could feel the frenzy well inside of him, pulling him towards her. He could see the corners of her maw curl upwards in a victorious grin. He was so enchanted that he missed her complete message. _"Take off your armor,"_ she commanded.

 _Here we go again,_ Zim rolled his eyes, but complied with her demand, removing his helmet first. When he stood before her in nothing but his undergarments, she gave him another command, _"Extend your arm."_ Zim did this cautiously, extending his left arm outwards, palm facing upwards. She approached him quickly and took his arm in her jaws. Before he could even panic, she bit down lightly. He could feel the virus inside of him go out of control the moment her sharp fangs pierced his skin.

He let loose a ferocious roar, one very far from human. This was it, he was signing away his humanity. But now he wasn't so sure that he even cared. This was him now, the frenzied human. A monster in his own right.

But Nova eventually removed her teeth from his skin, the wounds closing immediately and a black mark left in its place. Like a tattoo, it started on the back of his hand and extended half the distance between his wrist and elbow. _"I haff given you ze mark of ze Volfsangel, marking you as one of Knights. Mein servant, mein protector, mein varrior. And I haff suppressed ze frenzy just a bit,"_ she explained.

And just like that the frenzy disappeared. Zim was unsure how to feel. On one hand, he felt _human_ , like he was supposed to. But on the other, surrendering to the virus felt _so right_. "Why bother?" he asked, hoping for some clarification.

 _"_ _You must overcome ze frenzy on your own. If you lose yourself to it now, you'll fail,"_ she explained.

XXX

 **Alright, this was a tough chapter to write. And I'm not just saying that because I had to rewrite the entirety of it. It was legitimately difficult to write. When I was writing for Fuun, I had just inserted random Japanese words in place of English ones instead of trying to bust out an entire accent. The German accent wasn't hard to write (it's a bit thicker than the one that I have) but I'm a bit concerned about those of you reading this. So, before I sign off, I'm going to try and make sure you read Nova's parts correctly. There is no "th" in the German language, th either becomes a "z" or an "s" (occasionally an "f", but I never really use that one) sound instead of the "th." There is also no "v" sound. A heavy accent would have "have" pronounced as "haff." "W" is pronounced as "v" but I'm sure you all knew at least that. Oh, and "J" is pronounced as "Y" which is why Junge sounds like young-e. I spelled the German words properly, just know that they're pronounced with the same accent I described above.**

 **As for my translations, I know some of them aren't perfect. I got away using straight dictionary translations for Japanese because I doubt many of you actually know the language, and those who do may not know the exact Romaji spellings like me and** ** _have_** **to rely on dictionaries lest I sound like an ass. I'm awful at spelling, I admit it!**

 **Anyways, with that out of the way, I'm not going to do translations for this one because there is so little actual German (I will note that mein Kumpel means my mate… at least one way to say it). If you have a specific question about a verse, I can tell you what I mean, but I can't guarantee that they are the proper translations. So I apologize in advance, native speakers out there. Before I end this chapter, I would like to make a note about the Wolfsangel (she calls it the Volfsangel). If you have no idea what that is, I would suggest looking it up. It's very difficult to describe, so I'm going to assume that you all know what a Wolfsangel is moving forward (presumptuous, I know, but there's no way I can describe this thing that a picture wouldn't do a thousand times better). Thank you for reading this long chapter, please stay tuned for the next chapter.**


	10. Chapter 10

Chapter 10 - Torschlusspanik:

Author's Note:

 **Something strange is definitely going on. I wonder how Zim will find out about his friend's kidnappings. Let's find out… please, enjoy!**

XXX

 _Torschlusspanik: Fear time is running out to achieve life goals. Literally gate shutting panic._

 _Progress to Zim's explosion: 20%_

Nova had been extremely unhappy when Zim asked to take her mate's body. She growled and grumbled but eventually agreed that Shagaru's body was best used to protect her newest soldier. Zim took as much of the deceased golden Magala as he could carry, intent on crafting a decent set of G-Rank armor.

Nova had been kind enough to take Zim to the bottom of the mountain. Zim had asked if she would take him back to Bherna, but she had adamantly refused. She didn't want to go anywhere near civilization, least of all humans. But Zim refused to give up trying to coax her.

He eventually bribed her with Specter… Finsternis to take him to Cathar. She was ultimately reluctant, but eventually she agreed to drop him off near the village. Zim watched as she flew away with the Magala. He felt a bit empty watching the Magala go.

He wouldn't deny that it was a better deal for all of them. The Magala would be safer with Nova than with Zim, Nova clearly wanted company at the Sanctuary, while Zim was no longer in danger of being discovered by the guild. It should be a relief.

Zim hitched a ride from Cathar to Bherna via balloon. He briefly considered stopping by the Shrine to yell at the Guru, but decided that he didn't want to risk being gassed again. So he left without saying a word to anyone in the small village. Though he could swear the Guru had watched him leave with a large smirk on his face.

Zim had no idea how long he had been gone. His perception of time had been dilated by the sleeping gas, he could've been gone three days or three weeks. Though he doubted that he had been gone for that long, he assumed that it had been at least three days. So he really should've gone to Val Harbor first.

But he went to Bherna anyways, just on the off chance they were still there, disobeying him. And if he knew them like he thought he did, there was no doubt that they had remained in Bherna against his wishes.

He stepped off of the balloon and looked around. Bherna was practically finished repairing the damages done from the unknown monster. They had finally removed the massive tail blade from the cook's table and most of the buildings had been finished. Even the Wycademy looked complete from the outside.

Zim was starting to wonder if it really _had_ been three weeks since he had last been here. They had gotten a lot of work done for just a few days. The only thing that remained was the scorch marks and the still partially ruined armory building. Zim had no idea why they would fix that building last.

A new thought struck Zim. He wasn't sure where to start looking for Wolf and the others. He had never given them a set place to gather, assuming that it would take him longer than three days to complete his mission and thus they would be in Val Harbor. He growled to himself, reprimanding his stupidity, and nearly decided to step back onto the balloon and head over to Val Harbor.

But he didn't. He decided instead to have a look around. Perhaps he'd get lucky and run into them. He'd spend at least a few hours searching before giving up and going back to Val Harbor. He started with the main section of the village. He stopped by the armory and asked several people if they had seen someone fitting any of his comrade's descriptions.

Surprisingly, they had. They pointed him to the hotel where they said someone of Wolf's description had stayed. None of them had noticed the huge man leave the village, so Zim assumed that Wolf would still be in the hotel, or at the Wycademy as they had noted he went often.

Before Zim headed to the hotel, he stopped by the smithy and handed over the necessary parts of Shagaru to craft a decent set of armor. The smithy had clearly never worked on G-Rank equipment before, but promised he would do his best. Zim left a sizeable amount behind to pay for the labor and headed over to the hotel.

It was easy enough to bribe the woman at the counter to tell him where Wolf was staying. The low rank hunter had registered the name under "Wolfgang." Zim was unsure if that was a pathetic alias or his actual name. Zim didn't think much more than that and headed up to the room.

He was unable to procure a key from the woman at the counter so he, very carefully, broke the door down. And, to his surprise, the broken door was the least of the service crew's problems. The room was trashed, the beds had been flipped, and sword marks littered the room. All over the walls and even on the floor. There was a giant crater near the corner next to the door, it looked as if a small meteor had landed in the room.

Zim let out a sigh before leaning down to investigate. "Definite signs of a struggle," he mused. The ground was still warm, which meant that this didn't happen too long ago. And Zim could only think of one person who had a fire weapon that could cause this much damage. Eve. There were some metal splinters embedded in the ground near the crater.

A shield had shattered. Which meant Eve was fighting someone, and judging by the state of the room, there had to be at least more than one attacker. Then he noticed the blood. Where Eve would've been standing to unleash her attack was a large pool of blood. And that pool turned into a trail that lead over to the window. Zim followed the trail to the window and took a look outside, the Wycademy looming in the distance. And he could just barely make out the trail of blood heading in that direction.

 _Zim's explosion: 35%_

XXX

They had been blindfolded while their assailants carried them. They couldn't move, so they didn't bother tying them up. They traveled for what seemed like hours. Wolf couldn't tell how long exactly it had been. Being blindfolded and having no control over one's muscles distorted his perception of time. He wasn't sure how long the paralysis was going to last, but no matter how hard he tried, he couldn't even move his fingers.

Eventually, he felt them throw him on the ground. His nerves were paralyzed, so it didn't hurt, but he could definitely tell he had been tossed to the ground. The blindfold was ripped from his eyes and he saw his surroundings. Or he would've if he wasn't facing the floor.

He felt one of them roll him onto his side so he could see the room he was in. It was a simple white room. They could've taken him anywhere. Even if he could move, even if he could escape, there'd be nowhere to run. The door was open, taunting him with how easy it would be to just run.

He could see the two male attackers, but the female was nowhere in sight. He hadn't seen what had happened to the rest of his friends, but he was sure they were captured too. One of the assailants wasn't carrying a weapon and he was pacing nervously, limping slightly from his wound. The other one, sporting dual blades, leaned against the wall, silently glaring at the pacing attacker.

"You done goofed," the man leaning against the wall said.

"I know, I know! You don't need to remind me," the man hissed, never stopping his pacing.

"We were supposed to take them _alive_ ," the leaning man said, his red eyes never stopping his glare. _What happened?_ the thought went through Wolf's head, but he had been unable to communicate out loud.

"I _know_ that! Just shut your mouth and don't tell anyone anything. She's not dead… yet. And the big boss doesn't have to know about this," the pacing man urged.

"The _boss_ already knows," a new, female, voice said. The third attacker walked into the room, no longer sporting the armor she had worn while fighting Wolf. She had switched to a simple lab coat. _Dr. Steele?_ Wolf thought, managing to shift just slightly to get a better look.

It was Dr. Steele all right, headmistress of the Wycademy. _Had she known I was tailing her?_ Wolf wondered, thinking that he was the reason why they were attacked. But his attention shifted from shock to confusion as someone else entered the room behind Dr. Steele.

The man wore similar armor as the other attackers, but his was even darker. His red eyes glowed brighter than any of the other attackers as he walked over to the man who had been pacing. The man froze in place after the supposed boss entered the room. "What did I tell you?" the boss growled. His voice was deep and gruff.

The man panicked and said, "It was an accident, I swear! She was too strong, I had to do _something!_ " He was clearly about to say something else, but his boss moved so fast Wolf could barely follow the movement. He cleared the three meters between the door and the weaponless attacker in less than a second, grabbing the man by the neck.

"A low rank like her was able to hold off two high ranks and our esteemed Dr. Steele?" the boss growled, hoisting the weaponless man off the ground. The other two assassins looked down at their feet, silently ashamed by being bested by a mere low rank.

"Her… defense… too… good," the man choked out, but was silenced by his boss squeezing harder.

The boss suddenly tossed the weaponless grunt aside, growling, "You should pray that I can save her." He walked over to Wolf, bending down next to him. Wolf could see a pair of dual blades resting on his back. Wolf tried to recall if he had seen that particular pair before, but couldn't quite remember.

The man looked at him, glowing red eyes mesmerizing, before turning around to address Dr. Steele, "This one's awake."

"Yes, we used paralysis weapons. The other one should be awake too, but that one passed out after being stabbed," the headmistress responded.

"Why would you not use sleeping weapons? Or better yet, a sleeping gas like the Grand Guru?" he asked, turning back to Wolf. "Sometimes finding good help is difficult," he mumbled to the paralyzed man.

"Did you at least remember to leave a trail leading back to us?" the boss asked, not turning around from his work. Wolf could hear a _sucking_ sound as a blade was pulled free from a human torso. He watched as the boss laid the blade next to him, right in front of Wolf. If Wolf could move… he could strike at the boss.

The two assassins glanced at each other before saying, "I think she left a blood trail behind us."

The boss sighed before turning around and yelling, "That's just _great_! Now he knows we've hurt one of his friends! The _idea_ was… why do I even fucking bother?" he turned back around. "Help me prop her up," he commanded.

The two assassins moved to help their boss immediately. Wolf could see out of the corner of his eye that it was Eve that had been stabbed. Anger welled up inside of him, but he could do nothing while paralyzed. But he redoubled his efforts to free himself, just barely managing to move his toes. But that was enough to inspire him to try harder, the paralysis was wearing off.

He watched the boss hold her mouth open, which wasn't too difficult because of the paralysis. He pulled a small, gold vial out of his pouch and popped the top. He poured the contents into Eve's mouth. Most spilled, but at least a few drops made it down her throat as she started to convulse.

Her spasms pulled her free from the two attacker's hands, but the boss kept a firm grip on her face. Her closed eyes eventually popped open as she let out a scream. She struggled, trying to get out of the boss' hands, but he pulled one of the swords from his back and made a light incision on her arm.

Her eyes went wide before they slowly closed, falling into a deep sleep. "That's how it's fucking done," the man growled. The previously pacing man picked his weapon back up and breathed a deep sigh of relief. She wasn't dead.

But that didn't stop his boss from standing in a single smooth motion and jamming his blade deep into his chest. The assassin coughed up blood as he dropped to the ground. His limbs went lax as he quickly descended into sleep, unable to stop the bleeding himself. The other male assassin choked slightly, likely on vomit.

But Dr. Steele seemed more peeved than anything else, "Was that really necessary? We're short staffed as it is."

The boss scoffed, "I have no use for incompetence. How far away is he?"

"My sources say that he's made it to Bherna. He should be converging on this location soon enough," she said. The boss only nodded, motioning for the other assassin to clean up his comrade's mess. He helped only by removing his blade from the deceased man's chest.

XXX

 _Zim's explosion: 40%_

Zim was getting steadily angrier and angrier as he approached the Wycademy. Even without a constant source of the virus nearby, he could feel it spreading throughout his mind. He knew his eyes had turned red once again. He hadn't lost himself yet, he still felt human, but he wasn't sure if he would be able to remain that way when fighting the kidnappers.

He paused at the entrance to the Wycademy and took a deep breath to calm himself. It did very little, but it made him feel better. The blood trail had become practically invisible several hundred meters back, but it didn't matter to Zim. He knew exactly where the kidnappers had gone.

He walked into the Wycademy and was greeted by a completely empty room. It made sense, it was pitch black outside everyone had gone home. But the emptiness unnerved Zim slightly because one would expect at least a few night owls to remain behind. But there was nobody here.

He took a few steps into the massive entryway, glaring straight ahead. The blood trail was not present, he had no clues as to where they had gone. But he had a haunch. And that haunch led him towards the headmistress' office.

Dr. Gloria Steele's office was on the other side of the entry hall, near the stairs that led down into the Wycademy's massive library. He hoped that at least one of his companions had spent some time down there. He cursed at himself for getting distracted, and kept walking. Only to stop once more.

A man had walked out of the headmistress' office and headed straight for Zim, stopping only a few meters away. "You made it," the man said.

Zim instantly recognized the man's voice and immediately grew confused. "Malakai?" he said. Despite Malakai covering his mouth, Zim could tell the man was grinning. Two pairs of red eyes glared at each other as it dawned on Zim exactly what happened. "You took them," Zim growled.

 _Zim's explosion: 45%_

"I did," Malakai said simply. He held two fingers in the air, "Put him down, please." Zim's eyes widened when three rapid fire shots came screaming at him. The first two failed to penetrate his armor, the third he caught with his bare hands.

 _Zim's explosion: 55%_

 _"_ _I'm going to flay the skin from your bones,"_ Zim roared as more and more bullets rained down upon him. He began dodging left and right, completely evading the rapid fire shots. Eventually the barrage ended and he heard the tell-tale click of a heavy bowgun that needed to be reloaded. So Zim took the opportunity to rush at Malakai, aiming to kill the man.

"Stop him," Malakai commanded rather nonchalantly. Zim had no doubt the two of them were equally matched, but Zim had the advantage of the virus coursing through his body. It increased his speed and strength to inhuman proportions, so much so that he would be able to overwhelm the number two hunter in the world.

Malakai must've known this, for dozens and dozens of similarly-clad soldiers dropped from the columns. They had managed to hide in the poorly lit main hall using black armor to blend in. They dropped to the floor and surrounded Zim, all of them wielding different incapacitating weapons.

 _Zim's explosion: 68%_

Zim drew his weapon, Dark Claw Demise, and prepared to fight off the dozens of attackers all at once. He unclasped his helmet and threw it from his body, allowing him to see better. He considered stripping himself of the rest of his armor to increase his speed, relying on his frenzy-increased skin strength to protect him, but decided against it. he didn't have time.

The first attack came in the form of a charge blade wielder. He swung wildly at Zim, hoping to end the fight in a single, powerful blow. Zim sidestepped the attack and easily decapitated the man. A feral grin spread across Zim's face as he let the frenzy take control of his actions.

 _Zim's explosion: 88%_

Attackers came in all directions, many at a time. Some couldn't even penetrate his armor, few could go through his tough skin. But once one of them managed to draw blood, Zim could feel the sleep start to take him. But the frenzy kept him awake. He slashed the man across the chest and turned to the next attacker, not bothering to finish the man off.

Red lightning bounded across the room as Zim swung his longsword around his body protectively, warding off strikes in all directions. He had already slain a dozen opponents; wounded another dozen or so. And there were still many, many more swarming his position.

 _Zim's explosion: 96%_

Poor luck struck Zim as the scythe-like end of his blade became lodged in the skull of one of his opponents. No amount of tugging could free it easily, he would have to tear the whole head free. So he abandoned his weapon to continue the fight. The remaining opponents were much more skilled than the ones he had killed earlier. A quick glance would put the first few dozen at the low rank end of the spectrum, but these fighters were easily high rank. But still no match for Zim.

 _Zim's explosion: 97%_

The hard concrete floors were becoming slick with blood as Zim caught a blade with his bare hands and then tore the arm of the owner free from its socket. All the while grinning with savage delight. He no longer felt human. He kept fighting, ripping arms from their sockets, breaking bones with ease, and disemboweling men with one arm while the other fought off two opponents at once.

 _Zim's explosion: 98%_

That small voice in the back of his head, the last bit of his human side, started to wane. He wanted this. He was willing to sacrifice everything to get back at Malakai. Nothing else mattered. He gripped a soldier's head and began to _squeeze_ with all his might before it popped open like a balloon. Then it was only him and Malakai left, plus the unknown bowgunner that had stopped firing at him when the soldiers arrived.

"Well Malakai? Can you dance?" Zim roared. He grabbed a hold of his blade and ripped it free from the man's skull. He regarded the blade for a moment before tossing it aside. He wanted to fight Malakai bare handed. His skin had begun to harden even further as he fought, now even high rank weapons bounced off him. He wondered if Malakai's G-Rank gear could even penetrate him.

 _Zim's explosion: 99%_

Malakai only twitched his fingers, a volley of rapid fire bullets suddenly rained down from all directions. Zim's eyes widened when he realized there was no space for him to dodge. The soldiers were just a distraction! They allowed bowgunners to close off all avenues of escape. He grit his teeth as the bullets pierced his skin, carving their way through his tough outer shell like a drill. He dropped to the ground, sleep beginning to overcome him.

He watched, fear in his eyes, as Malakai shook his head and said, "That didn't work." A woman exited out of the headmistress' office, Zim just barely had time to recognize her as Dr. Steele before his eyes shut. She walked over to Malakai and observed the battlefield.

"It was a long shot, but we gave it our best," she mumbled. She grimaced at the dozens of dead bodies littering the ground and the copious amount of blood on the floor, it would not be fun to clean up. The ones Zim had left alive crawled away from the carnage, desperately drinking potions, trying to save themselves. Many still died in the process.

 _Zim's explosion: Contained._

XXX

Wolf watched as the boss strode into the room rubbing his temples, Dr. Steele hot on his heels. Behind the two of them came two grunts, different than the ones that had been sent to kidnap him, dragging something behind them. Wolf's eyes widened, he had regained control of some of his minor body functions, when he recognized Zim, fast asleep.

"The paralysis is about to wear off and I have no idea how long the sleep is going to affect him. Get them into chairs and tie them up," the boss ordered. _Malakai?_ Wolf managed to place his voice now that he was no longer speaking as if he was gargling gravel. The man removed the cloth surrounded his head, but it didn't help Wolf in identifying him. He had never seen Malakai without his helmet, but he figured that the boss was indeed Malakai.

He could feel someone pick him up and set him down into a chair. Rope was wrapped around him, pulled tight, just as he felt control return to his legs. Running was no longer an option. Zim was put next to him, helmet having been removed from his body. Malakai pulled up a chair as well, though he was not tied down.

Malakai breathed a heavy sigh and said, "Leave us." Everyone except Dr. Steele left the room. He turned to glare at her, "I said leave."

"I'm drawing the line at being kicked out of my own office, Malakai," Dr. Steele growled. "I allowed you to become the leader because _he_ liked you best. But don't forget that all of the men that died today were my men. You sacrificed none of yours… except the one that _you yourself killed!_ "

Malakai chuckled slightly, "My hunters are all upper high rank and above, I didn't want to sacrifice them to Zim. He's stronger than me, you know that right? It was a calculated risk, one that did not pay off."

"Yes, and this isn't exactly something that we can try again," she growled, pulling up a chair and sitting next to Malakai. Wolf watched the two bicker back and forth like brother and sister, trying desperately to say something to them. But he was unable to move his mouth, yet.

"I wouldn't worry too much about it. I'm sure we'll think of something," Malakai shrugged.

Gloria sighed, "What were we even thinking, anyways? What would've happened if this little gambit of yours actually worked? We wouldn't have been able to stop, him, you know that right?"

Malakai just offered a small chuckle and a smirk, refusing to say anything. Realization dawned on Dr. Steele, "You were willing to die for this, weren't you?"

Malakai's red eyes met hers, "I've always been willing to die for this. You were too scared to even receive the mark!" Dr. Steele looked down at her feet, silently ashamed for whatever had happened between the two of them. But she opened her mouth to say something, only to be cut off.

At that moment, before Gloria could respond, Wolf managed to cry out, "Whash da 'ell ish goin' on!" His words were slurred and he was surprised they even understood him.

"Ah, the paralysis is starting to wear off. We shouldn't have to wait much longer," Malakai noted, not answering Wolf's question.

Rose practically threw herself out of her chair when she regained control of everything all at once. "What's happening?" she cried out, hoping that Malakai would answer her. He didn't, of course. He just kept staring at Zim.

But it grew harder and harder to ignore the two as they bombarded him with the same question over and over again, and seemingly a million others as the few minutes passed waiting for Zim to wake up. " _Enough!_ " Malakai yelled.

Rose and Wolf were silenced immediately, but only for a moment. Then the questions started again. "Be quiet you fools!" Malakai growled.

"I don't think speaking to them that way would be wise," Zim's tired voice sounded, silencing the room. His red eyes opened to glare at Malakai, who returned the glare ten-fold. "How long do you think these ropes will bind me, Malakai?" Zim snarled.

"They don't have to hold you for long, just long enough for me to explain what's going on," Malakai said. Eve had yet to wake up.

"Well?" Zim growled, prompting Malakai to continue.

The G-Rank hunter sighed before deciding to explain. He _was_ going to wait for all of them to wake up, but Zim became conscious much faster than he anticipated. He would start without Eve and hope she woke up soon.

He decided to start his explanation by removing the glove covering his left arm. He held it up, palm facing himself, showing Zim the Wolfsangel stained on his skin. Zim's eyes widened in understanding before they darkened with anger. "You went to go see Nova, correct?" the G-Rank hunter asked.

"I did," Zim said.

"Then you know what this mark means," Malakai said, putting his glove back on.

"I do," Zim replied. "That still doesn't explain why you attacked me and my friends."

"Come now, Zim, we both know that you don't have any real friends. They're your responsibility, that's why you came to save them. Have you heard of the Apex state?" Malakai asked.

Zim growled when Malakai mentioned the lack of friends, but focused on the question he was asked instead. "Nova mentioned it," he answered.

"Then you must realize that I'm trying to help you, right? I put you in an emotionally charged situation and forced you to overcome it… unfortunately, it did not work," Malakai looked annoyed for a moment, before the expression disappeared from his features.

Zim let out a sigh, "That's just great. Now, can you let us go?"

"Not quite yet. I want to hear about your trip to the Sanctuary," Malakai said, leaning in slightly.

Zim rolled his eyes, "There's not much to say. Did you know the Grand Guru was going to use sleeping gas on me?"

Malakai chuckled, "He does that to all new initiates. I wouldn't get too angry at him."

Zim snorted before continuing, "She spoke in a strange language at first, but eventually switched over to English to communicate with me. She spoke of the death of her mate, the Knights of the Wolf, and eventually gave me the Wolfsangel as she did you. I took Shagaru, by the way, and I'm turning him into a set of armor."

He noticed Malakai flinch when he mentioned the death of Shagaru. He shook his head softly before saying, "She has a right to be angry, really. It's mostly my fault that those hunters showed up, I had thought them to be willing recruits." He sighed deeply before continuing, "I had wanted you to see the source of the virus up close and personal. I was hoping that she may be able to tell you how to overcome the frenzy, but I'm guessing she had no clue."

Zim only shook his head. Malakai cursed before leaning back in his chair, nearly tipping it over. "Well damn. Whatever, this was clearly a failure. I'll have to do some more studying in order to find a different answer. When that time comes, are you willing to do anything to overcome the virus?" Malakai asked.

Zim scoffed, "It's not like I have a choice. The virus is likely to consume me anyways, you saw how far gone I was during the fight. Of course I'll do anything." Malakai nodded thoughtfully before the two of them resumed staring at each other. Malakai made no move to untie Zim.

Eventually, a woman clad in Nargacuga armor entered the room and said, "Sir, it's a message from the guild." She held out an envelope with the letter contained within. Malakai nodded his thanks before waving his arm, dismissing her. She bowed slightly before leaving what Zim assumed to be the headmistress' office, due to Gloria still sitting, silently, beside Malakai.

Malakai ripped the envelope open and read the contents on the letter. He looked up at Zim, a grin on his face. Their red eyes met and he said, "The Fatalis has returned. She's flying for castle Schrade this very moment." Zim returned the grin as he was finally freed from the chair.

He was going to get to see Fuun again.

 _Progress to Zim's explosion: 20%_

XXX

 **Sigh, that was an interesting chapter to write. I hope that it wasn't too obvious Malakai was the boss at first. I do wonder, however, how many of you guessed that he would be a part of the Knights of the Wolf? And their leader to boot? Anyways, I added the little explosion meter to give a sense of how far gone Zim is during each part of the story. If some of you recognized the phrase "Progress to X's explosion" congratulations, I borrowed it from Mob Psycho 100. Anyways, next chapter we get to see Fuun again! I don't know about you, but Zim's pretty excited. Stay tuned to see how that turns out!**


	11. Chapter 11

Chapter 11 - Sehnsucht:

Author's Note:

 **I was actually convinced to change the story a bit from what I had originally envisioned. Someone brought up an excellent point and ultimately made the story better, in my opinion. Oh, by the way. I don't have my 3DS with me at University, so I cannot look up what the Shagaru Magala armor set looks like. And google was dreadfully unhelpful. So I'm improvising, relying mostly on my memory, but I'm giving it a bit of artistic liberty when I describe the set. So here we go, let's begin. Please, enjoy!**

XXX

 _Sehnsucht: An intense yearning for something far off/indefinable._

The first thing Zim did when he was released from the chair was punch Malakai in the stomach. He doubled over, but did not make a sound. He knew he deserved it. Zim, a grin firmly entrenched on his mouth, left the Wycademy and headed down to the main village. He picked up the armor set from the smithy and swapped it with his Rathian set.

The armor fit well. It was white and gold steel wrapped around his torso, it was thin but strong. The shoulder blades were fashioned into short spikes and a cape connected to the back of the armor. Out of the entire set, he was most impressed by the cape. It was clearly made from the section of tail he had taken from Shagaru, not the wings as the usually were. It gave the cape a bit of weight, despite the overall lightness of the armor.

The smithy had taken the length and flattened it out into a cape that ended just above his knees. You could still see the scale pattern on the cape, unlike on the rest of the armor, but it was more than that. Small spikes ran up and down the material, dotting it randomly. The cape didn't end uniformly; the smithy had torn it up a bit to give it the look that it had worn many battles. A stylistic choice Zim most approved of.

The greaves and the leggings were fairly standard as far as steel plated armor was concerned, but the boots were surprisingly comfortable. It was hard finding comfortable boots when it came to steel plate armor. The only problem, and Zim had no real complaints otherwise, was the lack of a helmet. The smithy didn't quite have the material to make a good helmet, but Zim would do without. The armor was mainly for show anyways, his frenzy enhanced skin could weather most blows.

Zim then set out for Dundorma, leaving his friends behind. They had whined and begged, but Zim forced them to take a separate balloon to Val Harbor. He wanted them nowhere near Dundorma. The letter had explained that they were holding a G-Rank meeting for all those willing to fight the Fatalis. Zim knew that they would only end up sending four out on the hunt, he would have to convince them to send him alone.

The last thing he wanted was for some poor excuse for a hunter to get blasted because he wasn't paying attention. Or, Kami forbid, they find out he could talk to Fuun. Thoughts of how to convince the Chancellor to send him alone flowed through his mind during his trip. The only saving grace he could think of was that the top ten G-Rank hunters likely wouldn't bother with this assignment.

He had managed to convince the guild that Fuun had been significantly weakened, and she wasn't gone for long. Perhaps that would be his selling point. He didn't need anyone else to throw themselves into danger when he could do it alone. Though he wouldn't be fighting Fuun.

The balloon eventually landed and he was greeted by the Chancellor himself, flanked on both sides by guards. Zim raised an eyebrow, he was not aware anyone was noted of his arrival. "Ah, Zim, excellent. Now we can begin. This way please," the Chancellor said and turned to walk away, guards following him.

Zim was led into a small room, filled with people. _G-Ranks,_ Zim noted when they all turned to look at him. Zim walked up to the front of the room and took a seat next to Ruby. There were no tables, just mats and pillows for people to sit on. Ruby glanced at his new armor and rolled her eyes.

The Chancellor walked up to the front of the room where a podium waited for him. "This is everyone, I guess. With Malakai busy and number one not needed we'll start the meeting," the Chancellor explained. The crowd of G-Ranks began to mummer among themselves and he waited for the noise to die down before continuing.

"As you all know, a Fatalis is heading for Dundorma once again. We believe that this is the same Fatalis as last time, which our very own Alexander lost his life to fighting," he said. The room burst into an uproar, clearly upset about Alexander's death. _He must've been popular,_ Zim noted.

Once again the Chancellor had to wait for the noise to die down before continuing, "After the Fatalis has finally been slain, we can hold a funeral for our fallen soldier. Now, who is willing to volunteer for this quest?"

The room was quiet for a moment as the G-Ranks deliberated quietly, trying to figure out if they were ready to fight a Fatalis. Zim stood, however, and addressed the Chancellor, "That will be unnecessary, I am fully capable of fighting the Fatalis alone."

Shocked whispers spread throughout the crowd as Ruby's eyes widened. _"Are you insane?"_ she hissed, Zim was the only one to hear her, however.

Zim ignored her and continued to convince the Chancellor to send him alone, "I was the one to drive off the Fatalis in the first place, now that I have G-Rank armor, I should be able to be more aggressive. I can slay this beast alone, there is no need for anyone else to risk their lives."

The Chancellor chuckled, "Perhaps you are right. Very well, if you are so confident in your abilities then the guild will sanction this quest for you alone, Zim." Zim bowed his head slightly, acknowledging that the Guild Master likely specifically ordered a team of four to engage Fuun. The Chancellor was likely going against a direct order.

"Please, follow me," the Chancellor said, opening a door in the back of the room. The two of them stepped through the door, Zim paused to take a look behind him. He saw Ruby's furious gaze before the door shut behind him. Then it was just him and the Chancellor.

It was an even smaller room than the one he was previously in. It was more like a broom closet than an office. In the center of the room was an altar covered with thick cloth. The Chancellor walked to the other side of the altar, while Zim stood opposite of him.

"Zim, you are without a doubt one of our most accomplished hunters. But you still pale in comparison to our number one rank hunter. I would hate to have to send you off to fight a Fatalis alone without some sense of security," he explained. He then pulled off the heavy cloth from the altar.

To Zim's surprise, under the cloth was a sword. A longsword that glowed with golden light. It was a beautiful, magnificent blade. "What is this?" Zim asked, wondering if the Chancellor was going to give the weapon to him.

"This is the number one hunter in the world, the God Slaying sword. Whomever wields this blade takes that mantel so long as they hold this sword in their hands. Tell me, what makes monsters difficult to hunt?" the Chancellor grinned.

Zim thought for a moment. They were fast, strong, and usually very difficult to kill. But their defining trait had to be… "Their high speed regeneration," he answered.

"Exactly," the Chancellor chuckled, "This is the absolute peak of human engineering. It completely negates a monster's regeneration. Imagine how easy it would be to hunt even the strongest monster with this weapon."

Zim stared at it in awe, reveling in the golden light it gave off. It definitely had a God-like appearance. "Is there any others of its kind?"

The Chancellor chuckled again, "If there were, do you think that we'd give this weapon the moniker of _best hunter in the world?_ "

Zim looked at the man, "Are you letting me take this?" The Chancellor nodded, amusement dancing in his eyes as Zim grasped the hilt of the sword. He lifted it free from the altar and brandished it, swishing it, testing its balance. The sword was, without a doubt, the most perfect blade he had ever come across.

The Chancellor handed him a simple sheath made from leather that extinguished the blade's holy glow when placed within. Now it just looked like a simple longsword. He took his previous sword from his back and replaced the blade with the golden longsword. He handed the cruel scythe to the Chancellor who promised to return the weapon when Zim did the golden blade.

And then Zim set out for his quest. He headed towards the balloons, eager to speak to Fuun again. Despite having the most powerful weapon in the world at his disposal, he knew he would not be using it. Despite desperately wanting to at least seeing if it really did eliminate a monster's regeneration.

He was nearing the balloons when his path was blocked by none other than Ruby. She had her arms crossed as she glared at him, daring him to ignore her. "I'm coming too," she demanded.

Zim rose an eyebrow and looked her up and down. She was using the same mystery set that she had used the first time against Fuun. "No," Zim said simply, and walked past her. He didn't get far before he was stopped, she had grabbed his arm.

"I wasn't asking," she hissed. Zim rolled his eyes and freed his arm from her surprisingly strong grasp.

"Why do you think you get to come along?" Zim growled.

She scoffed at him, "You upstaged me last time, I deserve a chance at redemption."

"You don't need redemption, this is my fight," Zim argued, walking away once again. He made it to the balloon and was about to step on when a blur passed him by. He looked up slightly to see Ruby's smirking face already on the balloon. "Fine, your funeral," Zim growled as he boarded the craft and prepared to take off. She only kept smirking.

 _Progress to Zim's explosion: 30%_

XXX

The two of them landed without a hitch. They entered Castle Schrade in the same fashion as before, however, Zim was noticeably without caution while Ruby was on high alert. She had drawn her bow and nocked an arrow, preparing to fire the moment she saw the beast. Zim had remained absolutely calm while moving forward at a steady pace. Ruby fell behind with her constant looking behind her. She didn't want to be ambushed again.

"So what's the plan?" she said as loudly as she dared.

"There is no plan," Zim admitted, wondering if he should just let Fuun kill Ruby, or knock her out again, so that they could talk in peace. But that would be unlikely to happen, she was ready to fight, with or without Zim's help.

"Improvisation, good, I like it," Ruby grinned. Zim suddenly stopped, causing her to nearly crash into him. She wasn't watching where she was going, she was too busy scanning her surroundings.

Zim let out a loud sigh, He had to face the facts, there was no way to get rid of Ruby, short of killing her himself. And he didn't want to kill her. "Put that weapon down, goddamn it," he said.

She looked at him like he had grown a second head, "So I'm not ready when the monster attacks? No fucking way!"

She flinched when he whirled around and hissed, _"Put the weapon down before you embarrass yourself."_ He paused, for a moment before saying more calmly, "We aren't fighting her."

She looked at him, absolutely confused, "What do you mean we aren't fighting her?"

"I mean just that. We. Aren't. Fighting. Her," he said slowly, as if speaking to a child. She stared at him suspiciously for a moment before agreeing to his request. She loosed the arrow, letting it fly true into the wall of the castle before placing her bow on her back.

"Fine, your death wish. The moment she attacks, though, I'm killing her," she growled. "How are you so sure the Fatalis is a her?" she asked after a moment of thought.

"I think it would be best if I showed you," Zim said, gesturing towards Fuun who was coming in for a landing. He approached her without fear, while Ruby followed a few feet behind him, cautious as she could possibly be.

She watched him walk right up to the terrifying beast and offer a greeting in the form of a small wave. The Fatalis regarded him for a moment before turning to stare at Ruby. The monster's crystalline eyes bore deep into her soul, fear set deep into her gut. She shouldn't have come along.

 _"_ _Why did you bring a Ningen?"_ Fuun hissed.

"I apologize, she tagged along against me wishes. There was very little I could do, I'm afraid," Zim explained.

 _"_ _Does she understand what's going on?"_ Fuun asked, looking down at Ruby. She had frozen in place a few feet behind Zim, unsure of what to do or say. Her blue eyes twitched occasionally as she attempted to comprehend her situation.

"Give it a minute," Zim sighed.

Ruby eventually snapped out of her trance and turned on Zim, stomping up next to him and snarling, _"You can understand her!"_ she pointed to Fuun.

"Her name is Fuun," Zim said carefully.

"I don't fucking believe it," Ruby trailed off, refusing to look at the massive Fatalis. _"Why didn't you mention this before?"_ Zim opened his mouth to say something, but she kept talking, "I think it'd be something pretty fucking important to mention, you know… _being able to talk to monsters!_ "

Zim waited a moment to see if she would interrupt again before turning to Fuun and saying, "It's going to be a minute, do you mind?"

 _"_ _Be swift, my patience is waning,"_ Fuun hissed before lying down to observe Zim's uphill battle in explaining what was going on. No easy feat, even for Zim.

"When did all this," she gestured to Fuun, "fucking happen?"

"When not how? Very well, after Elm ran and you passed out… I managed to pin her to the ground. I had heard her voice throughout the fight and I wasn't able to confirm that's what was going on until we began talking after she was pinned," Zim explained.

"That's just great, I fucking pass out and you go and lose your mind," she sighed. She paused for a moment, "You pinned her to the ground? She must be weaker than I thought."

Zim immediately stiffened as Fuun narrowed her eyes at the smallish human. _"Tell the ningen that I am more than willing to knock her out again, so that we may continue in peace,"_ she growled.

"What did you fucking say?" Ruby said, stepping forward, only to be held back by Zim. A vicious grin was present on her face; she was losing it.

"She said that she would knock you out again if you don't calm down," Zim said, pushing her back. The last thing he wanted was to pick up what was left of Ruby's body when Fuun blasted her to pieces. "As interesting as it would be to see the two of you fight, I doubt you'd be able to win."

 _"_ _She hasn't a chance in hell,"_ Fuun smirked.

"Fuck you," Ruby said to her, then turned to Zim, "And fuck you too. How were you able to pin her then? Huh? Did she just roll over for you?" She crossed her arms and glared at Zim, only for her gaze to soften when Zim's hardened, bright-red eyes pierced her soul.

 _"_ _I'm not human anymore,"_ he growled. He wasn't sure if he was ever human to begin with. It was a deep sound, almost mirroring Fuun.

 _Zim's explosion: 50%_

Ruby's eyes widened when she understood what was going on, "Your eyes… they're red. How did this happen to you?" She dropped the cursing and the tough exterior, now concerned that her comrade was dangerous. She might have to kill him… if he could even be killed anymore.

"I've been having… a hard time justifying all of this recently. I found a Gore Magala youngling a few weeks ago… and I kept him. I didn't realize that as I held onto him, he was infecting me with the frenzy virus," Zim explained. "Now my only hope is to go apex, otherwise I'll die. But the frenzy has an… unexpected side effect, I can understand the monsters now. And they me."

Ruby ran her hands through her dark brown hair as she tried to process what was happening to Zim. She came to a single conclusion, he wasn't dangerous. At least not yet. "So what? Now that you can talk to them, they're no longer the enemy? Newsflash, the guild ain't gonna buy that," she sighed.

"I am aware of that. I discovered something important when speaking to Fuun, some monsters can be negotiated with. Some are willing to turn back. I understand that not all monsters are going to be like that… but Fuun is," Zim said, gesturing to the Fatalis, who was patiently waiting for them to finish talking.

"The guild ain't gonna buy that either," Ruby sighed. She thought for a moment and said, "You broke guild law, Zim. I'm not sure what I'm gonna do about it, but goddamn it…"

"I bested Malakai earlier today in one-on-three dozen combat, I slaughtered nearly thirty men. You cannot beat me… Ruby," Zim growled, feeling the frenzy well up, but he beat it back, thinking of something better to say. "How about, you and I say… fuck the guild and their laws. Can't you see? Fuun is willing to sit there and wait for us to finish speaking, she could have easily killed you. And I would've helped."

 _Zim's explosion: 63%_

Ruby thought hard for a moment, rubbing her temples as headache set in. She shut her eyes tight as she pondered the implications of ignoring guild law. Finally, her eyes opened slowly and she regarded Zim with a small smile, "All right… _fuck_ guild law. But I want in on this, Zim. I want the frenzy too."

"I had thought you might say that. I'm afraid that, despite a large group of people's efforts, I have been the only success concerning contracting the virus," Zim admitted, hoping that she would change her mind.

She snorted, "Of course you are… well in that case, I guess I can only ask for the next best thing. You got yourself a goddamn partner." Zim raised an eyebrow, but before he could complain, she growled, "Don't try and worm your way out of this one. I'm sticking by your side, whether you like it or not."

She held out her hand, which Zim reluctantly accepted. He was being strong armed into something, but at least she might be able to keep up with him. Unlike Rose, Wolf, and Eve, who would only fall behind. "Very well, partners it is," Zim sighed. She only gave him a vicious grin.

 _"_ _Are you quite done?"_ Fuun said, noticing that the duo seemed to have come to an agreement. Just in time, she was a bit worried for Zim for a moment. She was about ready to snap up the annoying ningen and get their conversation rolling again.

"Yes, quite done," Zim said, turning around to face her. Ruby took a few steps forward to stand at his side, they were equals now. "What is it that you wanted to talk about?"

 _"_ _As I have promised, I brought your armor back with me,"_ she said, sliding forward the slightly battered Agnaktor set.

Zim waved his hand at the armor set, "Don't bother. I've gotten an upgrade." It was at that moment that Ruby noticed that Zim was indeed wearing a set she did not recognize. She decided she would question Zim on it later.

 _"_ _Indeed, I like the lack of a helmet… it's more tasteful, I think. I heard you bickering with your mate and I heard a word I recognize, but cannot place. Frenzy… it sounds so foreign, yet so familiar all at once,"_ she said, her tongue flicking out of her mouth before darting back in.

"What did she say?" Ruby whispered. Zim rolled his eyes, it was going to get annoying translating for her very quickly.

Zim decided to ignore that Fuun had deemed Ruby his mate, and focus instead on explaining the frenzy, "She asked about the frenzy. The frenzy virus is… well it's a virus that affects monsters, it makes them behave irrationally and eventually kills them."

 _"_ _I know that… but why can't I remember the source of the virus?"_ Fuun said, her eyes narrowing. Zim debated on whether to tell her about Nova or not. Eventually he decided against reminding her, it was his job to protect Nova at all costs… and he wasn't sure what Fuun's reaction would be.

"It's not important," Zim said, waving her questions away. "Is there anything specific you wanted to talk about? Or did you come to attack Dundorma again?"

Ruby's eyes widened when she realized that Fuun may still be a threat. But, to her credit, she didn't immediately reach for her bow. Fuun let out her hissing chuckle before saying, _"Actually, my aniki is not far behind me. He should be here any moment to speak to the ningen that convinced me to turn away from my goal."_

Zim stiffened, Ruby noticing immediately. His hands curled into a ball as he considered his options. He wasn't sure how dangerous Kami would be, for all he knew, the white Fatalis was angry he convinced his younger sister to turn away. Perhaps he was here to kill him and then move on to Dundorma. But Zim steeled himself against that possibility, he had the God Slaying Sword, not even Kami could stand against it.

Ruby opened her mouth to ask what Fuun had said that put him on edge, but the words fell from her lips as a great shadow covered the castle, and the rest of the world. The sun became blocked out as a massive vortex appeared in the sky, heralding the arrival of the Elder One.

The massive white dragon, only slightly larger than Fuun, but twice as intimidating, landed gracefully in the center of the castle's yard. He immediately stood up on his hind legs and walked over to greet his sister. His entire body was white, the only thing on his body not white were his black claws and horns… and his blood red eyes.

The two Fatalis rubbed their heads together briefly before separating. Fuun backed away, giving her brother plenty of space to speak to the ningen. He lowered himself on all fours, but did not incline his head so that he was on Zim's level. The white god would be above Zim at all times.

He eyed the two ningen with equal parts amusement and contempt, _"Which one of you can speak to me and my imōto?"_ His voice was unmistakably masculine. There was not the slightest edge to his voice at all, no anger, no hate, nor love. It was the voice of a king upon high, who held all others below him as unworthy of his time and emotion.

Zim stepped forward, shoving the trembling Ruby back behind him. She had never faced a white Fatalis before, and she knew that they were considered the _most_ dangerous monster in the word. Rare as hell, but extremely difficult to kill. "I am the ningen that can speak to you, Kami," Zim said respectfully, bowing his head slightly.

Kami snorted, _"At least you have manners, ningen. No… Demi, half human. I cannot say the same for your companion, however. Will she not kneel before me?"_

"Get down on your knees," Zim hissed to Ruby. The fire returned to her eyes as she opened her mouth to give a resounding _fuck no_ , but Zim managed to prevent her outburst by snarling, _"Do it."_ She grumbled, but got down on her knees and lowered her head to the great white monster.

 _"_ _Excellent. Now, Demi, what to do with you…"_ he said trailing off. Their red eyes connected and Zim could swear he saw the Fatalis smirk, _"I can smell it coming off of you in waves, Demi. You have been, without a doubt, infected by the frenzy virus."_

Zim nodded slowly, admitting that he was indeed carrying the virus, but he did not say anything. He didn't dare say anything. So the Fatalis continued, _"Which means that those_ _vermin_ _are still alive."_

 _Zim's explosion: 76%_

The frenzy swelled within him, _how dare he…_ his thoughts trailed off as he reigned himself in before Kami could catch a hint of his anger. There was no need to provoke the old dragon. "One survives, yes. And her son. Tell me, _Kami_ ," Zim couldn't help but hiss, "She had said you did something to them. She refused to elaborate, I was wondering if you would deign yourself to my request, and explain."

 _"_ _Careful, Demi, you might lose your tongue,"_ Kami hissed. _"The false ones were a race that believed themselves to be gods. I allowed them to live because I saw no harm in their actions. I had started to grow concerned when they began to draw followers from the ningen."_

He paused for a moment before explaining, _"The ningen did not worship what they deemed to be monsters, and I had allowed that for I care not about the pathetic ningen. However, I was confused as to why these golden beings were drawing human worshipers."_

He seemed to think for a moment, as if remembering what he had done. It was at this point Zim realized how impossibly old Kami was. It is said that the Godbug lived to be 1000 years old, but no one had lived long enough to prove it… but it seemed as if Kami had outpaced even 1000 years. Zim had begun to grow curious to how Kami came to be, and if he knew he was not really God.

 _"_ _I had discovered their secret. They released a toxin into the air they called the frenzy virus. At that time, the toxin served no real purpose. They used it to threaten people with plagues and feral monster attacks if they did not bow to them! It was despicable, so I punished them,"_ he explained.

Zim could feel his frenzy going out of control. _Did that really happen or is he making this all up?_ he wondered. Nova had sounded legitimately distraught… and Malakai and the Knights of the Wolf really believed in Nova as their true God. Zim wasn't sure if she and Shagaru actually strong armed humans into worshipping them.

Zim's eyes glowed ever brighter as he could feel a growl escape his lips. The white Fatalis lies. He is no god, he is but a being stronger than the rest. A bully that forces his will upon others. He had no right to interfere in Nova's species' lives.

 _Zim's explosion: 85%_

 _"_ _So I cast a shadow over the sun for three years straight. In the darkness, they began to mutate into what they truly were. The young lost their eyes and their golden sheen. The virus became a way for them to see and it lost its potency, no longer able to affect humans. I did not know it was still possible for the golden ones to live, I had thought I destroyed them,"_ Kami said, grin now fully present on his maw.

A red haze descended upon Zim's vision, the frenzy was winning again. "Nova had said that she was suffering. If that is true, then the golden Magalas are rare, she is the last one. You condemned an entire species to death, didn't you?"

 _"_ _Parasites are remarkably hard to exterminate, aren't they? I hadn't necessarily hoped they would perish, rather that they would fade into obscurity,"_ he growled, showing signs of anger. But Zim did not flinch in the face of his wrath. He had the God Slaying sword. _"But now I see that they have a champion. Has she sent you to plead for mercy? To hope that I can reverse the eclipse?"_

Zim's red eyes blazed at the Elder One, "I'm here because of her, not you," he said, pointing at Fuun. "Nova, as she is named, is more than strong enough to outlast you. _You are no God!_ You pale next to her!"

Anger welled in both of them, no longer able to contain their hatred for one another. Zim was the embodiment of the false gods, and Kami felt the need to destroy him. Kami was the evil that Zim sought to eliminate in Nova's name, and he would not stop until Kami was but a bloody mess at his feet. _"When I'm done with you, I shall fly out and slay your precious Nova,"_ he hissed, standing up on his hind legs.

Zim darkened and placed a hand on the hilt of his weapon. _"Aniki! Please don't!"_ Fuun cried out as both combatants released roars of epic proportions. Though Kami's roar was that of a true monster, Zim's was frightening in its own way. A human who had lost his path.

 _Zim's explosion: 90%_

 _"_ _Excellent. You at least sound like a monster, Demi. But can you fight as one?"_ Kami growled as his chest began to glow and thunder rumbled in the sky. Red lightning flashed, striking the ground around Kami and Zim, though both were completely unharmed.

"Zim!" Ruby cried out as he rushed forward, drawing his blade. Kami met him head on, completely oblivious to the golden glow of the sword. Lightning struck Zim, but he bushidoed through it, swinging his blade upwards, cutting into Kami's chest.

Blood splattered the ground as Kami screamed and took a few steps back. Zim brandished the sword, flicking the blood off the golden blade, the red droplets painting more of the ground red. _"Excellent hit… that actually hurt,"_ Kami growled before his eyes widened.

A feral grin spread across Zim's features as Kami realized his wound was not healing. "Having trouble?" Zim taunted as Kami staggered backwards, completely confused to why he wasn't healing.

 _Zim's explosion: 93%_

Ruby had placed a hand over her mouth, completely blown away by the pure power of the weapon Zim had in his hands. Fuun had a similar expression on her face, though she was absolutely appalled that her aniki could be harmed, and her eyes showed a fear they had been void of the last time she had fought Zim. _He was actually scaring her_.

Zim cracked his neck and pointed the blade at Kami. "Do you understand now?" he growled, "You are no God. You are no less mortal than myself or my companion." The white Fatalis growled lowly at Zim and prepared to release a burst of lightning, sure to fry everyone in the vicinity.

Zim could see the red pass from his tail up through his glowing chest and into his throat, when a massive ball of red lightning was spat from his jaws. Zim did not flinch, however, rather he charged forward, bushidoing though the attack once again. The ball of lightning barely missed Fuun when it slammed into the wall of the castle, exploding and electrocuting everything in a ten meter radius.

Zim rushed forward, the monster had lifted his head out of the hunter's reach, but that would not stop Zim. He charged passed his swinging claws and swing at his leg, lopping the limb off. The Fatalis screamed again, this time stumbling to the ground, laying down flat.

Blood from the severed limb splashed across Zim's face, highlighting the savage grin as he approached his downed opponent slowly. The Fatalis' eyes held so much fear and pain within them that Zim couldn't help but be in ecstasy. _"This is the fall of a God,"_ Zim growled as he swung the blade downwards.

 _Zim's explosion: 99%_

Fear was unknown to Kami, as was pain. He would've groveled for his life if he knew how, but he remained silent, a plea for mercy not evident on his lips. He was… strong… in the face of death. After so many eons of living, the sound of his head being severed from his body echoed throughout the world. The Elder One had fallen.

Zim stared at his defeated foe for just a moment before he tilted his head back and let loose a hollow laugh, reverberating throughout the silent castle. He laughed and laughed before the sound was reduced to nothing more than heavy breathing.

He slowly looked down at his audience, breaths coming quickly, teeth bared, looking, searching, for his next opponent. His breathing slowed down and awareness returned to his eyes as he laid his sights upon Fuun.

Fear was evident across her face, as she cowered from him. She backed herself as close to the wall of the castle as she could, trying to get away from him. His eyes widened and softened, but the harsh red did not turn into the brilliant green. The frenzy still coursed through him, but he ignored it.

His grip on the God Slaying sword slackened and dropped from his hands all together. He approached Fuun, weaponless, in hopes of calming her. _"You killed him,"_ she said as he got closer. He reached out to touch her, but she flinched from him, backing away further, cracks appearing on the castle walls.

She repeated it over and over again as she continued to back away, Zim trying to get closer, _"You killed him, you killed him, you killed him."_ What had he done? Eventually, her wings spread and she leaped into the air and flapped away. Zim stared at her fleeing form before looking down at his own hands. They were stained in blood.

XXX

 **That seems like a good place to stop. So there we have it. Zim's losing it, he's so very close to explosion, and Malakai and Nova are nowhere near him. What happens when he explodes? Will the frenzy start to deteriorate his mind until finally killing him? Will he gain control over the apex state? Or will something else happen? What did you all think of incorporating Ruby into all of this? And the whole partners thing? And, of course, Kami's death. Surely, Zim will be praised as a hero, but does he want it? Is this the tipping point, can Zim take any more?**

 **I would like to make a note about Ruby. She's, personally, my favorite character I've ever written. You see, I like to curse, and I curse a lot. Most of my editing time is spent going back through and removing unnecessary cursing from characters who would not normally curse... but I get to keep Ruby swearing like a sailor. It's easily my favorite part of her character. Anyways, stay tuned until next time to find out how the death of Kami will affect Zim!**


	12. Chapter 12

Chapter 12 - Backpfeifengesicht:

Author's Note:

 **Zim's on the precipice, so close to losing it all. And Ruby's been thrust into a world she doesn't quite understand (despite her tough exterior, she's faking it) and now she has to deal with Zim, who could snap and turn on her at any moment. But… we start at the funeral for Alexander. And guess who finally found the balls to reappear? Yeah, this is going to be fun. Please, enjoy!**

XXX

 _Backpfeifengesicht: A face that deserves to be punched._

Alexander's funeral took place not even a kilometer away from Dundorma on a beautiful field of grass. There were several large hills covered in flowers, soon to be one more. Alexander was being buried as a typical G-Rank hunter would, within a casket of gold surrounded by the hunter's weapon's and armors. However, the hunter was buried in his absolute best set, accompanied by his best weapon.

It was an open casket funeral, even though Alexander had been bisected, only his face was shown to the crowd that had gathered his passing. The casket was huge, big enough to fit three men, plus their weapons and armors. There was no hole, as the guild would cover the casket in a huge mound of dirt taken from the hunter's homeland. In this case, Val Harbor.

A rather large gathering of people came to mourn the hunter's passing, showing that he had been well-liked through his life. He had been young, only thirty-five years old. His family, at least those that could make it, and his friends were there, forming a large line to speak to the deceased one last time before his face would be seen no more by the world. After his friends and family, his fellow G-Rank hunters came to pay their respect.

Though the number one hunter in the world didn't exist and Malakai was much too busy to come, every other G-Rank hunter was present. Except Ruby and Zim, who were still coming back from their quest. The funeral had started the moment word of their success reached the Chancellor's ears, that way the funeral would be in full-swing by the time they came to pay their respects.

Although the Chancellor was present, the Guild Master was not. No one had seen the Guild Master in weeks, even the Chancellor had not seen his immediate superior in several days. All recent orders from the Guild Master came in the form of carrier ravens from an unknown location. Though the Chancellor tried to convince the Guild Master to show up for the funeral, the Master was far too busy, even for the number four rank hunter in the world.

The line kept moving, each person spending only a few moments to say goodbye. But when it came Elm's turn, he hesitated. Unsure of what to say. He was one of the last in line, so he took his time. Those behind him knew that he had been present during Alexander's death. He had watched his comrade die, now he was face to face with that death.

The silence persisted for several minutes until he finally said, "I'm so sorry." And that was all he could say. It was all he could think of. Elm knew that Alexander's death had been because of his own carelessness… but there was still a part of the hunter that knew he could've distracted the Fatalis.

They were doomed to fail from the start. After he had abandoned his comrades, he told the guild what had happened. And then he left. Left for home. He hadn't planned on coming back, but the funeral wasn't something he could miss. But one thing he noticed was that Ruby and Zim weren't being buried.

Because he had left before news of Zim's success spread through the city, he had believed that the two he had abandoned were slain. But he reigned himself in, just because they weren't being buried today didn't meant that they weren't dead. Perhaps the guild couldn't find the bodies.

So he turned away from Alexander, leaving so much unsaid. Perhaps if they had a fourth G-Rank hunter, Alexander wouldn't have been so focused on Zim. He shook his head as he walked towards the gathering of the grieving, waiting for Alexander's casket to close forever. It didn't matter, Zim was likely dead. That's what he got for not running away, trying to be the hero.

Then he heard it, giving him pause, though he did not turn around. It was a _dragging_ sound that pierced the silence left over from his few words. It sounded as if something large was being drug through the dirt, and the sound was getting louder and louder. Elm turned around just slightly, wondering if they were moving the casket.

His eyes widened and he fully faced the casket when he heard a loud _thud_ that echoed through the gathering of mourners. There stood Zim, clad from the neck down in white and gold armor, Ruby beside him. He had been dragging a massive head with him, and he had dropped it in Alexander's casket. _It was the head of a Fatalis,_ Elm realized.

"Rest in peace," Zim said evenly, not bothering to look at Alexander. Ruby said nothing as the hunter approached Elm. Zim pulled the blade off of his back and tossed it to the side, no longer needing it. Elm began to back away from the hunter, believing he was seeing an apparition.

They eventually came to a stop, Zim not a foot away from Elm, who was cowering from the stony-faced hunter. "Zim?" Elm said, hoping the hunter was not angry at him. He was very wrong.

Moving so fast he was just a blur to the onlookers, Zim struck Elm hard in the chest. There was an audible _clang_ as his metal fist connected with Elm's chest plate, followed by a crunching sound. Elm doubled over, coughing and hacking up bile and blood. Zim had hit him so hard his chest plate crumpled inward, creating a huge dent restricting his breathing.

He wheezed when Zim kicked him while he was down, sending him rolling over to his back. But Zim wasn't done with him. The hunter approached the downed man slowly, savoring his retribution. He gripped the man by the throat and hoisted him upwards while curling his free hand into a fist.

If his first strike was anything, Elm knew Zim could kill him with a direct blow to the face. He struggled helplessly in Zim's ironclad grasp, unable to free himself. Zim only tightened his grip, causing Elm to go slack, almost killing him from lack of air. Then he flung his fist forward, intent on killing the coward. All throughout the one-sided fight, Zim's face betrayed no emotion.

 _Zim's explosion: 99%_

Just before Zim made contact, someone stopped him. It was Ruby. Her hand curled around Zim's fist mere centimeters from Elm's face. "That's more than enough, Zim," she said calmly. Zim let out a fierce growl before dropping Elm so that he collapsed to the ground in a heap. Then he stalked away, towards his home.

Elm looked up at Ruby, intent on thanking her. But she leaned down slightly, so that she was hovering over his still crumpled form, feral grin spreading across her mouth. "I just wanted my shot in before he killed you," she hissed. Her fist made contact with Elm's face, breaking his jaw. He lay prone on the ground, knocked unconscious from the blow.

She snorted and rubbed her hands together, as if washing off his filth. She looked towards where Zim had gone, only to find he had not waited for her. Cursing to herself, she took off after him, wishing to be as far away from all the misery as possible.

The Chancellor picked up the God Slaying sword, unable to do anything to help Elm. One of the guests went over and checked to make sure he still had a pulse. He did. The Chancellor waved his hand, silently ordering the men to take Elm away to get his injuries treated and his chest plate surgically removed. It had crumpled so much that he doubted it was going to be coming off normally.

The Chancellor walked over to the casket, being the last person to see Alexander before it was closed forever. He looked at the head Zim had dropped into the casket. His eyes widened when he realized that it was a white Fatalis, not a regular one… which meant Zim had been fighting something so much stronger than what he was supposed to. He chuckled to himself, glad he had given Zim the God Slaying sword.

The once mighty Fatalis' eyes no longer shone with fierce fire, instead they had gone glassy and unfocused. The white mane had lost its brilliant sheen and the beast's tongue hung out of its mouth. The Chancellor smirked to himself, _oh how the mighty have fallen._ He closed the casket with the head inside, a companion to join Alexander for eternity.

XXX

Zim entered his new home with a loud sigh. Blast stumbled to his feet, he had been bored out of his mind, waiting for Zim to return. He stood and saluted, happy that Zim was back. But he did not see Specter with him. Worry struck the Palico in the gut, had Specter died? Zim was covered in blood, did he get into a fight and the Magala perished?

But Zim ignored the Palico, instead focusing on removing his armor. He unclasped his bloodied chest plate and tossed it to the side. He removed his armored gloves and tossed them away too, leaving his entire upper body bare. He left his armored leggings and boots on as he collapsed on his significantly larger bed.

The house was a bit too much for his tastes. It was so empty, despite Blast standing in the center of the room staring at him. Although it was still a one-room building, it was nearly three times the size of Zim's home in Val Harbor. He missed the smaller abode, it was much more comfortable than this empty place.

He let out a sigh, pondering his next course of action. He almost didn't notice Ruby enter his home, without knocking. He resisted the urge to roll his eyes as he looked at her. The grin from beating Elm had vanished and was replaced with a look of concern. She stood in the center of the room while Zim remained sitting on his bed. Blast was next to her, constantly looking back and forth between the two of them, wondering who the hell the woman was.

Blue met red as the silence marched on. Minutes passed until Ruby licked her lips and said, "What the hell happened to you?" She had yet to fully wrap her mind around Zim's situation. She knew what the frenzy virus was, but she had never looked into their effects.

"It's so hard to control," Zim growled out, clenching his hands into fists tightly. "I can feel it, you know… I'm so close to the edge that a single push can send me over for good."

"So that's why you nearly killed him," Ruby mumbled. She walked over to his bed and sat next to him, sighing as she did. "What'll happen if you go over the edge?"

"I don't know… and it's that fear that's slowly driving me insane," Zim said softly, his voice barely more than a whisper. He ground his teeth together, baring them so that she could see. His teeth had started to elongate, slowly becoming a mouthful of fangs. Though his form remained human, he wasn't sure how much longer that would persist.

"Why'd you do it, then?" Ruby said, not hesitating any longer. She wanted to get to the bottom of this. Zim looked at her, eyebrow raised, silently asking for clarification. "Why'd you keep the Magala? Even if you didn't know this would happen to you, a sane person would've just walked away. A sane person would've _killed_ the Magala."

"Sanity?" Zim echoed, almost wistfully. "The further and further I'm thrust into the frenzy, the more sure I become that I was never sane to begin with."

"Goddamn it, Zim, you're a hunter! Your first instinct should've been to kill it, why'd you keep it, of all things? I could understand walking away, not all of us would murder a helpless youngling, but _keeping it?_ " Ruby said, throwing her arms into the air.

Zim stifled a chuckle, keeping an iron hold on his emotions, showing nothing on his features. "Ah, but I wasn't always a hunter, was I? Although, the further I descend into the madness I realize that I was always meant to be a hunter, even if I shouldn't have been one."

He looked down at his feet as he continued. "I was a parentless boy in Moga for most of my life, as were many children. As I was supported completely by the village, I was technically a slave. I was expected to do what was asked of me, no matter how old I was nor how disgusting the task. Build this, move that, fish for this, help bury the dead, things like that. I was seven when someone left the _gate_ open and monsters of all shapes and sizes waltzed right on in… Moga coexisted with monsters relatively peacefully, which was why we had walls instead of hunters to keep the monsters away."

He took a deep breath, glancing up to see that Blast had backed out of the house. He didn't concern himself with the Palico's whereabouts, this was between him and Ruby. "The chief was a hunter, but he was too old to fight. And one of the villagers gave the command, save us. They begged and cried and, like a good servant, I grabbed the nearest weapon, a fishing spear, and ran it through one of the monsters. It was at that moment I discovered hunting."

"And I was good at it," he continued after a brief pause. "I held off the onslaught single handedly for some time until the villagers joined in. My spear had long since broken and I had been fighting with my bare hands. Me. A boy only seven years old pulling monster's jaws apart and snapping necks like twigs. I had never thought that I might be different. I had thought all hunters were like this… but I guess not. The frenzy has forced me to accept a hard truth."

He looked up and glared into Ruby's blue eyes, " _I am not human_ ," he said. "How much human I am, or what I am instead I don't know. Some hybrid, perhaps. After that day I had killed nearly three hundred small monsters and five large ones. I was tasked from that moment onward to defend my village. I had thought nothing of it at first, finally… I was not some slave, groveling for food. I could protect the village like no one else could, slaying monsters and collecting essential herbs too dangerous to be cultivated by anyone else."

A chuckle escaped his lips, but he did not clamp down on it. He _wanted_ her to see how far gone he really was. "Now that I have the frenzy, I can understand them. And I've come to a simple conclusion. Humans have damned themselves."

Ruby stood in one smooth motion, "That's nice, Zim. Unfortunately, comforting's not really my style, ya know what I mean?" He refused to look at her, turning back to his boots instead. So he didn't have time to counter her when she slapped him, hard across the cheek.

His head snapped to the side as she let out a low hiss. That hurt her more than it hurt him, clearly. Her hand stung, but she ignored the pain and grabbed ahold of his shoulders and shook him lightly. _He's so cold…_ she thought to herself. "Get a fucking hold of yourself! You aren't some beast; you aren't some monster. You're a fucking hunter! A damn good one at that," she snarled.

Despite the intention behind her words, Zim reacted violently. He stood quickly and shoved her away from him. She stumbled back and he took the chance to pin her against one of the walls. His eyes were blazing, glowing a bright red as his pupils began to contract and grow smaller.

"That's the problem, isn't it? We were too good. Don't you see? It's become ingrained in their minds that humans are dangerous. Its why they attack on sight. They, or at least most of them, don't go looking for a fight… but they're absolutely terrified of humans. So much so that they have to destroy them on sight," Zim explained, his hand over her throat, preventing her from speaking.

"What if, instead of hunting the monsters, destroying them, striking fear into the survivors' hearts, we had taken a different route?" Zim asked. Ruby struggled to free herself, to say something, but Zim only clamped down harder and continued speaking. "Perhaps none of this would've happened. Perhaps we could have harmony. Over the thousands of years we hunted monster, how long do you think it took Deviljhos and Rajangs to start to appear? Or Elder Dragons, hellbent on punishing humanity?"

He dropped Ruby much in the same way he had done to Elm earlier. Only she landed on her feet and refused to even cough, despite his strangle hold on her. "And so what? The past is the past. Sure, maybe we made a mistake, but there's nothing you can do about it now! It's time to face the facts, Zim. Your only hope is to hang on, push the virus away, and keep protecting Dundorma," she hissed.

Zim shook his head, "I don't think you understand. Hunting monsters has lost its thrill. Sure, I was angry when fighting Kami, but the last few monsters I had fought… I could not feel anything. Not joy, not sorrow, not even relief that the battle was over."

He clenched his hands into fists once more, before uncurling them and holding them up to his face, "But as I've delved deeper into the frenzy, I'm beginning to recognize something. _I like losing control._ I like giving up my sanity, if I had such to begin with, to the virus. And you know what? I've discovered a new _thrill_ … hunting humans. The feeling of them breaking beneath me holds that same pleasure as breaking monsters once did." An insane grin stretched across his face, fangs bared for her to see.

"So you're just going to switch sides? Is that your answer, Zim?" she said softly, recognizing how close he was to breaking. She understood now. If he lost himself, truly lost himself. He would die. End of story, his story. "Is this about Fuun?" she asked, realizing that he had been more distraught over chasing the Fatalis away than he had been about his own imminent demise.

"Fuun…no, I don't… I didn't mean to scare her off," he admitted, tone changing drastically from what it had been. His pupils returned, fighting back against the glow of his eyes. But it wasn't enough.

"What does she mean to you?" Ruby asked carefully, partially because she was frightened of the answer, partially because she knew she didn't want it to be true. That a man, a human, Zim, could love a monster.

"She was the first one I spoke to. She… despite her nature, spoke to me. A human. And she resolved herself to my unreasonable request," he said. He paused, "What did I do to her?" he asked softly.

Ruby chewed on her lip, pondering the best course of action. She had to do something. Something to seal the frenzy away, or at least contain it. She had managed to crack the shield the virus was forming around him, now she just had to scatter it to the wind. So she did the only thing she could think of.

She pulled him close, embracing him. He was still so cold, but she ignored it, holding onto him firmly, hoping that the virus wouldn't see her action as a threat. She felt him wrap his arms clumsily around her, clearly the virus was no longer working. Now, she just had to shut him down.

 _Zim's explosion: 97%_

 _"_ _Are you going to kill me?"_ she said quietly, forcing her voice not to waver. She was not afraid, and that was the point. If he really was going to switch sides, he wouldn't hesitate to take this opportunity.

 _"_ _I'd very much like to,"_ he sighed in her ear before he pulled away. She gave him a confused look, did she fail? "But I think I'd rather change your perspective. Do you understand the things I have said to you? Because they are the truth, whether you like it or not. I think… I think I should introduce you to Nova, my goddess."

 _Zim's explosion: 95%_

XXX

 **This was a shorter chapter, really meant to highlight our new dynamic between Ruby and Zim. He's losing it, she's not one for comfort (despite what she's willing to do for him) so you'd think the partnership was doomed to fail. But that's not the case. For, although he's losing it and she's a bit rough around the edges, they're both capable of understand the other. Zim understands what it means to be a hunter through and through, even if his faith has been waning recently. And Ruby understands Zim's pain (to a degree, we're going to get more backstory on her, I promise). We also got to see a bit of Zim's life before he became a hunter all those years ago. Life was harsh for little Zim, but it likely could've been worse. And it does get worse, trust me. Stay tuned to find out!**


	13. Chapter 13

Chapter 13 - Geborgenheit:

Author's Note:

 **Ah, I've heard a few good debates on the merits of Ruby's apparent relationship with Zim. Well… whether it can prevent him from exploding or not. A lot of you are fairly optimistic about Zim's current predicament. That's good, I suppose. But, you know me… optimism is never a good choice with me. To me (from a viewer's standpoint… not as the author) it seems more like a question of how long she can contain the inevitable. I'm sure it won't end in disaster… please, enjoy!**

XXX

 _Geborgenheit: The perfect mixture of cozy, safe, warm, and comfortable._

They boarded a balloon heading for Heaven's Mount. Zim had no idea how he was going to get into the Sanctuary. Nova's home, _or was it a prison?_ Zim wondered, was separated from the Mount with a large rock. The Grand Guru had put him to sleep before taking him into the Sanctuary, so he had no idea how to get past the rock.

 _Maybe if we climb down the mountain a bit, then we can find a path leading past the rock,_ Zim pondered, _or maybe we can just climb over it._ There was no definite answer. _Perhaps I can just blow up the whole damn rock._

"What are you thinking about?" Ruby asked. She had sat there, watching his red eyes twitch every few seconds. She was worried that the frenzy was taking control again.

"You know where we're going, correct?" he asked, snapping out of his thinking.

"Heaven's Mount, right?" she responded.

He nodded slowly before saying, "Have you been recently?"

"A few weeks ago, why?"

"Do you remember seeing a large boulder in the base camp? One that seemed to be blocking a different way up into the mountain?" he asked.

She scrunched her eyebrows together as she struggled to remember if she saw a rock. "Probably, but I didn't think anything of it. I thought the guild had put that there to prevent stupid hunters from falling off a ledge," she said.

"That rock separates Heaven's Mount from the Sanctuary, where Nova lives," Zim explained. Ruby let out a small sound of understanding. "The problem is the person who let me into the Sanctuary had put me to sleep… so I have no idea how to get passed the rock."

"Why can't you ask this person to let you back in?" Ruby asked, not seeing the problem.

"I'm afraid he might have a problem with you tagging along. So… I'm trying to think of how to get passed the rock," Zim said. It fell silent for a moment as Zim continued to think. "You didn't happen to bring bombs, did you?"

"I don't do sleep bombing," Ruby glared at Zim, as if he was insulting her G-Rank status. He held up his hands in a silent apology, to which she nodded to. "I do, however, have sleep coatings for my bow. Just because I don't sleep bomb, doesn't mean putting a monster to sleep isn't effective," she mumbled.

Zim nodded before going back to thinking. _Blowing up the rock is out of the question then,_ he sighed. They would have to do some climbing… something that neither of them would be looking forward to.

"Hey Zim," Ruby said, bringing him once again out of his thinking. He glared at her, not saying anything, but she got the message. _What?_ He was still a bit aggressive, the frenzy hadn't completely vanished from his system. "Are you forgetting something?" she said innocently.

He raised an eyebrow high, continuing to stare at her. He knew that he wasn't forgetting anything. She rolled her eyes and just pointed at his chest. He looked down at himself and remembered that he had forgotten to put his armor back on. Or grab a weapon.

"Oh… yeah, I guess I forgot to put something on," he said nonchalantly, not really concerned by his lack of armor or weapon. His skin was tough enough to withstand high rank weapons and his bare hands were as good as any weapon. The lack of a chest plate and a weapon simply made him faster, and speed was his deadly ally.

"Forgot?" Ruby echoed in disbelief. She could never imagine going without a suit of armor. "Are you sure that you'll be fine?"

"Trust me, I'll be fine. I doubt we'll even be fighting anything, though. Nova is not going to hurt me, and she won't hurt you… on the account that I tell her not to," Zim explained. The balloon landed at that moment with Ruby thinking, _does he plan to sic his goddess on me?_

Zim closed his eyes and stretched, breathing in the thin mountain air. He cracked his neck and slowly opened his eyes. Only for them to widen in surprise when he didn't see the rock blocking the Sanctuary. Worry began to rise deep within him, but he tried hard not to jump to conclusions.

 _97%_

Ruby hopped off of the balloon and landed next to Zim. The balloon didn't actually touch down, that way it could take off easier. She too cracked her neck as the balloon flew off. She rose an eyebrow as she saw Zim staring at the place where the rock once sat. She made the connection quickly, "Well, that makes our job easier."

Chunks of the rock lay around the path to the Sanctuary and a blackened crater sat near where the bolder once stood. Zim could feel his arm, the mark to be more specific, start to burn. He let out a hiss and looked down to see the mark glowing bright purple. _Oh, no,_ was the only thought that ran through his mind.

 _98%_

Ruby noticed the mark on his arm glowing brightly, "Uh, Zim? Your arm is glowing…" She hadn't mentioned it before, though she did notice the mark she had thought it was just a strange tattoo. But it wasn't acting like a normal tattoo.

He turned to her, his eyes wide with worry. His gaze intensified as his eyes glowed an even brighter red, "She's in trouble!" he cried out and dashed off. Ruby hesitated for a moment, trying to wrap her mind around what just happened.

But she took off after him anyways, recognizing the signs of the frenzy. She had already promised herself that she wouldn't let him explode. She had to keep him from losing himself… _easier said than done,_ she growled to herself.

She crossed the odd-looking bridge and dashed into the Sanctuary. She was immediately buffeted by black winds, _the frenzy is palpable here,_ she noted. She hoped it wasn't influencing Zim. She gave him a concerned look, trying to tell if he was still in control.

He was frozen in place, staring straight ahead. It was difficult to tell if he had lost it or not, as the sky was black. She followed Zim's gaze and her own eyes widened in surprise.

 _99%_

It was at that moment that she realized what was going on. A massive golden dragon was fighting four hunters. The golden dragon resembled, superficially, a Gore Magala, so Ruby assumed that this was Nova. _Oh, no…_ the thought echoed within her as she realized what was going on.

Nova was being hunted. And the change in Zim suddenly became apparent, there was nothing she could do. She had resigned herself to keeping him sane, but she hadn't expected him to break so soon… his eyes glowed brighter than they ever had before, his pupil disappearing and his iris expanding so that his entire eye turned a bright red. He was gone.

 _100%_

Fangs flashed in his mouth as he tilted his head back and let loose an awe-inspiring roar, if it did not strike fear into Ruby's heart. How had she failed so quickly? _Oh, god, there he goes,_ she watched as he took off, faster than any human possibly could, rushing into combat without fear.

She could see from a distance that the hunters fighting Nova were on the lower end of the G-Rank spectrum, as she recognized several of the G-Rank armors. That meant that they had left the funeral and headed directly to the Sanctuary to fight Nova. She did not doubt Zim was strong, he was strong enough to beat Elm, and her, two accomplished G-Rank hunters down, but there were four of them. Surely, the numbers favored the hunters.

She would've thought that his goddess would try and tip the numbers in his favor, but she jumped high into the air and out of combat, letting Zim fight alone. She considered drawing her bow and giving Zim a fighting chance… _can I shoot at my fellow hunters?_ The thought ravaged her mind and kept her firmly in place, hoping that Zim would be fine.

 _Static_

The first hunter to realize that Zim was attacking them wielded a greatsword. He spun in a tight circle as Zim descended upon him, aiming to gather enough momentum to slice Zim in half. To everyone's surprise, however, Zim stopped the weapon with his bare hand. The shocked hunter nearly dropped his weapon.

Zim slammed his fist down onto the flat side of the blade, his strength immense, and snapped it in half. Ruby put a hand up to her mouth when he grabbed the piece that had been snapped off out of the air and plunged the blade into the hunter's chest. The man cried out in surprise and fell onto his back, trying to get the weapon piece out of his chest.

Zim did not let up his attack, he stomped hard on the man's helmet, crushing his head. He stalked towards his remaining enemies, who were still stunned from his ferocity, leaving behind a flattened, blood-soaked helmet and a dead hunter. He grinned, having fallen off the ledge, and let loose another roar.

At that moment, someone ran up beside Ruby, another person trailing close behind. She turned to see who it was, but didn't quite recognize the man. He turned to her and said, "Is that Zim?"

"You know him?" Ruby asked. She noted that his eyes were the same red color as Zim's. "You too?" she asked the person who had followed the mysterious man.

"Ruby, it's me," the man said. She only squinted at him, causing him to roll his eyes, "Malakai. G-Rank number two? That's Dr. Steele, headmistress of the Wycademy. Did Zim lose control?"

"You know Zim?" Ruby asked, ignoring Malakai's questions. Malakai, who was in a bit of a panic, due to Zim's explosion, waved her question off and repeated himself. "Yeah, Zim lost it," Ruby finally answered.

Malakai turned to Dr. Steele, "This isn't good."

"Isn't good? We're fucked," Ruby snarled. Malakai held up his hand, silencing her.

"Do you have the serum?" he asked.

Dr. Steele held up a small vial, "Right here." Malakai nodded, but she continued, with a more worried tone, "But it needs to be ingested orally, I'm afraid."

Malakai slapped a hand to his face, "Of course it does," he sighed. As he thought of a way to force Zim to drink the purple liquid, Ruby turned back to the battle at hand.

Zim was fighting off three opponents at once, a longsword wielder, a switch ax wielder, and lance user. And he was winning, to Ruby's surprise. He had ripped the shield from the lancer, taking his arm with him, and had clearly broken a few of the other two hunter's bones.

There was a sickening _snap_ , correction two on one. Zim had twisted the lancer's head at and odd angle, before pulling it completely off of the man's body. The other two hunters were clearly being more cautious as they fought Zim, but it seemed as if their attacks were either bouncing right off or being healed at an astonishing rate. _High speed regeneration,_ Ruby realized.

She could see his face, the feral grin never vanished. He was enjoying himself, just like he said he was. The longsword wielder made the mistake of getting too close, Zim kicked at his knee, causing it to buckle. The hunter went down and Zim grabbed his upper and lower jaw, pulling them apart. He turned to his final opponent, breathing audibly, eyes blazing as he dropped the longsword user to the ground, his jaw hanging from a strand.

The switch ax user gulped and started to back away, Zim only a few steps away. The hunter switched his weapon from the ax form to the sword form and jammed it into Zim's chest when he leapt at the hunter. The blade lodged itself in Zim's stomach, his blood splattering across the ground.

 _Static_

Ruby let out a gasp when she saw him impaled upon the blade. The hunter breathed a sigh of relief, glad he had managed to kill the deranged human. He did not recognize the human, but figured the man was a hunter, at least.

But Zim was not dead, far from it. He slapped the hunter's hands away from his own weapon, causing both the hunter and Ruby to let out a cry of surprise. Zim pulled the blade from his chest, releasing a fountain of blood from the wound as it closed quickly. Dr. Steele coughed, clearly trying hard not to throw up from the sight. Malakai only watched, neither disgusted nor surprised. "We need to take him down when that hunter's dead," he said.

"Why can't we help him?" Ruby asked.

"It's already too late for him," Malakai noted as Zim tossed the hunter's weapon away. Ruby watched tumble down the side of the mountain before disappearing in the darkness. Zim rounded on the hunter, who kept backing away. Faster than the hunter could react, Zim plunged his entire fist into his chest, punching a hole through the man's armor and through his entire body.

The bloody appendage made its appearance on the other side of the hunter's body before Zim slowly removed it, savoring the man's pained expression. Zim's fist made a sucking sound as it was pulled free from the hunter's body. Zim turned Ruby and the others, fangs glinting even in the darkness of the Sanctuary.

"Here he comes, get ready," Malakai whispered. Ruby looked at him like he was insane, but he didn't notice. He pulled his dual swords from his back and prepared to engage Zim. Dr. Steele did the same, revealing she was carrying a sword and shield.

Nova landed not far behind Zim, _"Zat's enough, mein Knight. I am safe,"_ she said with a heavy sigh. Though no wounds were present on her body, it was clear she had taken a beating before Zim showed up and saved her. She didn't seem to notice the change that had happened, however.

Zim continued his approach towards Malakai and Dr. Steele, who had stepped forward to meet him head-on. The feral grin never left Zim's face as he crouched slightly, preparing to charge. Malakai mirrored the crouch, but Dr. Steele only brandished her weapon.

Ruby stood frozen where she was, not drawing her bow to help Malakai. She didn't know what to do. Malakai dashed forward, followed closely by Dr. Steele. Zim grinned as he lashed out at Malakai, hoping to hit the hunter in the stomach.

Malakai was ready, however. He rolled under Zim's attack and slashed at his side. Malakai's weapon was a high-powered pair of G-Rank dual swords, which easily sliced through even Zim's tough skin. However, the wounds he caused healed nearly instantly, just in time for Zim to collide with Dr. Steele.

Her weapon bounced off of Zim, clearly her sword and shield wasn't G-Rank. Zim let out a guttural growl as he slammed his fist into her shield, shattering it and tossing her several meters away from the sheer force of the punch. Malakai rounded on him while he was distracted, slashing into his back. Dr. Steele rolled onto her back, but did not get up. She lied on the ground, breathing heavily.

Zim turned and blocked one of the blades with his arm. Malakai's weapon cut deep into his flesh, but stopped once it his bone. Zim yanked the weapon from the hunter's hands and tossed it aside. Malakai was down to a single blade, and Zim wasn't slowing down. Malakai rolled away from the frenzied human, continually slashing at his side, only for the wounds to disappear without a trace.

Zim kept trying to strike at the hunter, flailing about with his fists until he finally kicked at the fast hunter, knocking him down. Zim pounced on his prey quickly, Malakai only barely able to roll away. He stumbled to his feet and limped a few steps, Zim had hit his leg. Zim's grin widened, believing he had won.

His eyes widened when a glowing shadow descended upon him. It was Nova. _"Enough!"_ she roared as she reared back on her hind legs before bearing down upon Zim, intent on crushing him. She figured the frenzy would protect him to a degree, but her sheer size would knock him unconscious.

That was not the case, however. Zim lifted his hands and caught her, the ground cracking beneath him as it absorbed the force from the impact. Zim remained standing, holding Nova, who wore a surprised expression on her face, on his back as if he was Atlas holding the weight of the world.

 _Static_

With a mighty heave, he tossed Nova several meters into the air. She flailed as she fell back down to the ground, trying to stop herself from slamming into the earth by flapping her wings. Zim took a few steps forward as she fell and spun in a tight circle, gathering momentum. Once she landed on her feet, he struck at her, hitting her hard in the face.

She yelped as she was knocked over by Zim's immense strength. She hit the ground hard, skidding a few feet. She groaned as she felt her regeneration start to repair the damage to her jaw, he had nearly torn her head from her body with a single punch.

Malakai had taken Nova's distraction to drink a potion and grab the weapon Zim had ripped from his hands. He leapt at Zim, hoping to catch him off guard. He managed to score two long wounds down Zim's back, but they quickly scarred over and disappeared.

Zim turned on him, aiming to smash his fist into the hunter's face, ending the fight. Malakai ducked under the blow and slashed at Zim again. The frenzied human blocked the attack with his arm, once again the blade becoming lodged into his bones. Zim struck at the hunter, but Malakai jumped backwards, leaving his weapon behind once again. He cleared just less than a meter away from the frenzied human before _throwing_ his other blade.

Malakai's second sword flew true and managed to pierce Zim's chest. Zim cried out, an inhuman noise leaving his maw, as he tried to pull the blade free. Malakai took the opportunity to go and check on Dr. Steele, who was still lying on the ground, several meters away from the fight.

"Gloria?" Malakai asked as he knelt down. She coughed as she came to, only to see a potion being shoved in her face. She growled in annoyance, but grabbed the potion Malakai offered and downed it.

"I'm fine," she said as she stood. She sighed as she saw Zim wrench the blade out of himself, the wound closing shortly after. Zim stumbled slightly, clearly weakened from the attack, but he did not fall. Instead, he tore the other blade from his arm and tossed them both aside. Malakai was now without a weapon.

"He's a tough customer, isn't he?" Malakai noted as he watched his precious G-Rank weapons drop to the ground. The dinging sound they made against the hard earth caused him to cringe.

Dr. Steele suddenly stiffened as she felt something run down her side. "Malakai, we have a problem," she hissed. He turned to her, concern etched on his face. She reached into her lab coat pocket and pulled out the vial she had shown him earlier, only it had shattered and the purple substance within was leaking through the pocket and running down her side.

"That's not good," Malakai noted as Zim released another loud roar. The frenzied human stalked towards his prey, grinning now that Malakai was unarmed and Dr. Steele's weapon couldn't even pierce his skin. "We might have to kill him," Malakai sighed, cracking his neck and preparing to meet his foe head-on.

Zim's walking pace quickly became a run as he dashed to clear the distance between him and his prey. Just as he descended upon them, however, a single arrow flew through the air and lodged itself in his back.

 ** _Static_** _Kill…_ _ **Static**_

He turned to see Ruby holding her bow, nocking another arrow and preparing to fire. He roared again and dashed at her. Once again, Ruby's aim was true, striking him in the chest, causing him to pause and pull the arrow out of his skin. There was a burst of blood as the arrow came free before the wound closed. He ignored the one on his back, however.

Another arrow struck Zim before he could continue his approach. And another, and another, and another, each time Zim tried to pull an arrow out, Ruby put one right back where it had been. Her aim was unbelievable, hitting Zim's heart each time. He roared again and rushed her, choosing to ignore the arrows.

She kept firing, however, hoping that Malakai would be able to protect her once he recovered his weapons. It was a foolish hope, however, as Malakai had only just now recovered both of his swords, while Zim was a mere meter in front of her. She halted firing as he raised his hand to strike, flinching back as his fist descended.

 _Static_

But the blow never came. Zim stood rooted to the ground, only a foot from her, hand still raised and curled into a fist. His bright red eyes had widened in shock, unsure of what was going on before he collapsed to his knees. A loud sigh escaped his lips as he fell, face-first, to the ground… asleep.

Ruby breathed hard as she stared at his prone form, bow clenched tight in her hands, another arrow knocked and ready to fire. She flinched as Malakai snuck up behind her and slapped a hand to her shoulder, "Well done. Sleep coatings?" he asked.

She nodded, "I always have them with me," she mumbled. Dr. Steele approached the duo, grumbling to herself.

"Well that's step one… I'm afraid that we can't do much else," she growled. Malakai rubbed his forehead through the helmet of his armor and let out a deep sigh.

"So what now?" Ruby asked quietly. They all held their breaths as Zim shifted slightly in his sleep. There was no way he was going to be staying down for long.

"I'm afraid…" Malakai hesitated before saying, "We might have to kill him. The frenzy has taken over; there's not much we can do without the serum with us."

"Serum? Can't you make another?" Ruby asked.

"Not without going back to Bherna. Some of the ingredients are quite volatile, it took a trained team of six three hours to make the one that broke. I don't think he'll stay down that long," Dr. Steele explained. "We may just have to kill him."

"Wait hold on, you only brought one vial?" Ruby asked.

"That's all we had," Dr. Steele shrugged. It was silent for a moment, Ruby trying desperately to think of a way to save Zim. But it seemed hopeless, he was gone.

 _I've failed,_ she clenched her jaw tightly. She had promised herself that she would be able to help Zim contain the virus… and now… "Who's going to do it?" she said softly. She fired the arrow into the rock in the center of the Sanctuary then placed the bow on her back.

Malakai and Dr. Steele shared a glance before he said, "A better question might be _how_ it's going to be done." Ruby raised an eyebrow as he continued, "I'm not sure if he can be killed anymore. My weapons can pierce his skin, but they aren't designed to chop through bone. We're going to need something bigger…"

 _"_ _Vat are ve planning on doing?"_ Nova growled, having healed her wounds and stood once more. She had made her way over to the deliberating group nearly silently, only Malakai noting her presence before she spoke.

"What did she say?" Ruby asked quietly.

"She's asking what we're doing," Malakai said before turning to Nova and answering, "I'm afraid we're going to have to kill him."

Nova growled deeply, _"Vhy? I sought you had a serum?"_

"Wait, you can understand her?" Ruby asked. She turned to Dr. Steele, "Can you understand her too?"

Dr. Steele opened her mouth to say something, but Malakai cut her off. He raised his arm and faced the palm of his hand towards his face, showing her his mark. "I got this from her. It's a concentrated dose of the frenzy virus, it allows me to understand her and other monsters… to a degree. It also allows her to alert me when she's in danger or needs something," he explained.

 _So, that's how he knew she was in trouble,_ Ruby realized. She watched him bend down and point to Zim's own mark. "He has one too, though he could understand monsters without it… and to a better degree than myself," he finished.

"I don't really understand, but yeah, sure, whatever," Ruby waved the information away, trying to shift the focus back to the matter at hand. "We still haven't decided what we're going to do."

"We were trying to think of a way to kill him," Malakai said.

 _"_ _Nein, you vere not! I can still save him,"_ Nova growled

"You cannot save him! He's surrendered to the frenzy, not even you can reverse that," Malakai said.

 _"_ _Do you doubt mein power?"_ Nova snarled, lowering herself so that her head was on level with Malakai's.

"Your power doesn't encompass the impossible," Malakai hissed. As their argument continued, Ruby edged closer to Dr. Steele.

"Does this happen often?" she whispered.

"They're both a bit upset over the death of Shagaru, Nova's mate. Malakai would never argue against his God, but he's dead…" Dr. Steele whispered back.

"So Malakai doesn't respect Nova's authority?" Ruby asked. Dr. Steele snorted.

"Not exactly. It's more of… well, she's going to come out on top anyways, he's just trying to get her to see it from his perspective before she makes the final decision," Gloria shook her head.

"Oh," Ruby said, "Are we really going to have to kill Zim?"

Dr. Steele looked down for a moment before saying, "I'm afraid that it's our only choice… I'm not sure why Nova can't see reason here, but Malakai must change her mind, otherwise we're screwed."

Ruby ground her teeth together, she didn't want Zim to have to die. _Is this my fault?_ she wondered quietly as Malakai and Nova continued to argue. Eventually, Nova slammed her foot against the ground, _"Fine! Kill him, if you must… but don't you dare come back again. None of you."_

Malakai glared at her before saying, "What does he mean to you? You knew that there was a good chance we'd have to do this! Why go back now?"

 _"_ _I… do not know. I do not vish to know eizer,"_ she hissed as she turned away from him. Malakai let out a deep sigh before walking back over to Gloria and Ruby.

"I'm afraid that we might've just lost her support," Malakai explained. Dr. Steele growled but said nothing. "We're going to have to make do with what we have, I'm afraid. Who's going to have the honors?"

He pulled one of the dual swords from his back and held it out to Dr. Steele. She shook her head rapidly, pushing the blade towards Ruby. She wrapped her hand around the handle slowly, taking the blade from Malakai. "I will do it," she whispered. It sounded more as if she was reassuring herself.

"Plunge it into his heart, that should be enough," Malakai said. Ruby nodded numbly before using her foot to flip Zim over onto his back. He wasn't very heavy. She knelt next to him and raised the blade over his heart. She clenched the blade hard with her hand, her knuckles turning white as she thrust downwards, preparing to impale him.

 _Static_

Only the world seemed to shake, causing her to pause in her motion. Nova had turned around to see what was going on as the Sanctuary continued to tremble violently. Dr. Steele had lost her balance and toppled to the ground, but Malakai seemed mostly unaffected. She looked down at Zim to see his eyes snap open and narrow when they focused on her.

"Do it! Do it now!" Malakai cried out as a fierce wind began to blow through the Sanctuary. It howled in her ears as she plunged the blade downwards, wondering how this was happening. The blade struck Zim, but did not pierce his flesh, rather it grated against his skin, sparks flying, as it bounced right off.

 _?_

The blade clattered to the ground, though none could hear it as the wind continued to pick up speed. _Not even G-Rank weapons can pierce him now,_ Ruby realized, fear welling up inside of her. They were dead. Her hesitation has killed them all.

Zim grabbed Ruby by the neck as he stood in a single fluid motion. He held her aloft in the air as she struggled to free herself. Nova had turned completely around, growing and preparing to pin Zim to the ground. Malakai had drawn his other blade while Dr. Steele could only watch in horror. Eventually, after Zim stared at Malakai intensely, he dropped Ruby.

Malakai watched as Zim's eyes began to darken to a blood red and his pupil returned, though his irises did not shrink back to their original size. His pupil began to thin to a slit, like the eyes of a snake. He tilted his head back and let loose another roar, this one much deeper than his others. The roar of a true monster.

Frenzy welled around him as a black mist seeped from his skin. Malakai's eyes widened when he realized what had happened. "He's done it," he mumbled. Dr. Steele managed to stand up, despite the shaking ground and the harsh winds.

"What's happening!" she shouted over the howling tempest.

"He's achieved apex! He's cured the virus," Malakai explained as loudly as he could. Ruby, who was still on the ground, only managed to catch the apex part. Eventually, Zim's roar faded as did the winds and the shaking of the earth.

He glared at Malakai and let out a deep breath, **"Free."** His voice had deepened considerably. He brought his hands up to his face and stared at them, as if they had suddenly changed. What no one but him realized was that he now saw the world through a red filter.

Ruby and Nova sighed in relief, Zim was safe. The frenzy had been beaten back, Zim was cured. "How does it feel?" Malakai asked cautiously. He leaned down and picked up his other blade, sheathing it on his back.

 **"** **It feels… exhilarating. I feel ten times stronger than during my frenzy,"** Zim explained. Malakai walked up to him to see that the apex human had also grown taller. Instead of standing only at five foot ten, Zim now stood six feet tall, matching heights with both Ruby and Malakai.

 _"_ _It is good to haff you back, mein soldier,"_ Nova sighed.

 **"** **And it is good to feel in control again,"** Zim returned the sentiment. He clenched and unclenched his fists a few times before suddenly dropping to the ground. He held his head as he growled something inaudible.

"Zim!" Ruby cried out, thinking he was in trouble. The black mist had faded around him and his eyes returned to their normal color. Zim looked up and grinned at her before standing back on two legs.

"I've deactivated the apex state. It seems like I can switch between normal and apex at will," he explained. He cracked his neck before continuing, "I feel _really_ good. What were we here for again?" he asked Ruby.

She opened her mouth to respond, but he beat her to it, "Right, right. I remember. I was going to introduce you to Nova, and have you receive the mark." Ruby raised an eyebrow, she didn't remember him mentioning she would be getting the mark.

"She's going to what?" Malakai asked, as if he didn't quite hear Zim.

 _"_ _I am to give her ze mark? And she is who exactly?"_ Nova growled, not sure why she was giving the Wolfsangel, a sacred mark denoting her subjects, to a strange woman she had never heard of before.

Zim grabbed Ruby and placed her in front of him, "This is Ruby, my… companion?"

"Partner," she corrected.

"Ah, right. Why don't you all get to know each other… I just realized that I have somewhere to be," Zim said, placing a hand against his head and clenched his eyes closed. They popped open, still a brilliant green color, and he walked away, "I'll be back in a few hours."

"Hey! Where are you going?" Ruby growled out, thinking he was abandoning her.

"I just… have to check up on something. Like I said, I'll be back in a few hours," he broke out into a run, avoiding further questioning. It was silent as everyone stared at the place Zim just was, none of them exactly sure what had brought this on.

"What was that about?" Dr. Steele finally said, breaking the silence.

"Whatever it was… I'm sure he's fine," Ruby said slowly, not really believing her own words.

 _"_ _I detected an odd scent of passion und fear on him once he returned to his normal state,"_ Nova said, _"Fernweh."_

Ruby watched Malakai's face go from confused to surprised as Dr. Steele only slapped a hand to her head. "I'm really missing out on something, aren't I? When will I be able to understand her?"

XXX

 **This chapter was a bit more annoying to write than I thought it would be. I shouldn't have taken the weekend off… but I did, and I'm not proud of it. Oh, well, I'm sure the chapter didn't turn out that badly. Things went wrong very quickly, didn't they? And what's with Zim running off at the end? Where is he going? And, of course, will Ruby receive the mark? By the way, the sound that "*~~~*" makes can best be described as turning off a TV. Stay tuned until next time!**


	14. Chapter 14

Chapter 14 - Fernweh:

Author's Note:

 **Well… here we go again, I suppose. I don't have much to say, really. No one was able to guess where Zim was going, but I guess that makes it a surprise. You'll figure it out pretty quickly, once we get started. But first, Ruby and the mark.**

 **And, because this is a monster hunter fanfiction, I feel obligated to do so… Capcom just announced Monster Hunter Double Cross! Probably eventually coming to America, it is supposedly a continuation of MH Cross with new hunting styles and arts as well as Palico styles (and arts, maybe). There's G-Rank! G-Rank! Plus, Barioth and Barroth are returning, as well as Diablos (and a deviant for him as well) … there's also a new flagship monster that sort of resembles a Gore Magala, just with spots on its wings that can release torrents of flames (like the Dire Miralis). And, you can transfer your Cross save files, so you don't lose any progress on your hunter.**

 ***Deep breath* okay, now that the hype train has passed, let's continue, shall we? Please, enjoy!**

XXX

 _Fernweh: A longing for a far-off place._

Ruby stared up at the massive golden beast as she looked down upon her. They had engaged in a staring contest for several minutes as Malakai and Dr. Steele speculated as to where Zim was going. Nova growled something, incomprehensible to Ruby.

Finally letting out a deep sigh, she turned to Malakai and said, "Alright, can someone tell me what I'm supposed to do?" Malakai paused in his conversation to look at her. He seemed to think of something as he said one last thing to Dr. Steele and then walked over to Ruby.

"Did Zim tell you about the Knights of the Wolf?" he asked. Dr. Steele crossed her arms as she waited for Malakai to be done. She clearly wanted to leave, she must've been doing something important.

"The what?" Ruby said. Malakai slapped a hand to his face in response.

"Right, well, the Knights of the Wolf are a select group of individuals within those who worship Nova as a God-like being that are tasked with protecting her. She gives them a mark upon their arms to signify them as Knights and to allow her to summon them when need be. The mark also allows for varied levels of communication with other monsters, though mostly just Nova," Malakai explained in a single breath. He took a deep breath and made to continue, but Ruby cut him off.

"Right, okay, so Zim said something about me getting the mark?" she said, glossing over the history lesson Malakai had just started to get into.

Malakai grumbled something, but answered her nevertheless, "That's the problem. The mark is only given to those worthy enough to become knights. You've never even heard of Nova until now, you're hardly qualified…" he trailed off when she glared at him.

"Qualified? I'm still not sure exactly what's going on, but Zim said I'd be getting the mark, so the mark I shall receive!" she growled.

 _If you would just let me explain,_ Malakai mumbled. "See, uh, Zim has no actual authority. I was elected leader of the knights-"

"In name only," Dr. Steele growled, walking up next to him. "In truth, I have as much authority as you do."

"But _I_ was named leader by Shagaru," Malakai argued.

"Who, I would like to remind you, is _dead_ ," Dr. Steele said.

Malakai snarled something incomprehensible, but Ruby interrupted to prevent the argument from escalating, "There's obviously some sort of power struggle, but I don't really care about that. Why can't I get the mark exactly?"

"Basically because _he_ ," Dr. Steele jerked her thumb at Malakai, "says so."

"Let's be fair, Gloria, she hasn't gone through any of the training, she hasn't even taken the _first_ step!" he complained, crossing his arms. Dr. Steele rolled her eyes.

"I don't really think we have time for training," Ruby said, crossing her arms as well, "but I'm not sure if Zim will be happy when he comes back if I don't have the mark." She grinned in victory when her glared at her.

Nova leaned down so that her head was on Ruby's level and chuckled, _"Zim's mate is right. You are no longer leader, Malakai. He has achieved vat you haff sought zis entire time, ze apex state."_

"What did she say?" Ruby asked. She was quickly becoming tired of asking other people to translate for her.

Malakai grumbled something, but did not argue with Nova. Dr. Steele, however, said, "She made a passing comment towards your relationship with Zim." Ruby narrowed her eyes in a fierce glare, one which Nova returned.

"Can someone please tell this overgrown lizard to just give me the mark all ready?" Ruby hissed. Nova reared back, offended by her statement. Malakai chuckled, but Dr. Steele remained completely serious.

 _"_ _Careful, fräulein, or I may just forget to giff you ze mark,"_ Nova growled. Ruby didn't bother to ask for a translation for that one, she figured it was a threat of some sort.

Malakai let out a deep sigh, he was beaten. "Very well, but there's one thing you need to do first." Dr. Steele and Ruby gave him a dirty look, but he shook his head, "There's nothing I can do about it. We have to, at the very least, remain true to our traditions."

"What is it that I need to do?" Ruby growled out haltingly, annoyed by having to undergo a seemingly unnecessary task.

"This is step one of anyone hoping to become a Knight, and it is the simplest of steps. You must only proclaim Shagaru… Nova, to be your Goddess, and that you will serve and worship her faithfully," Malakai shrugged.

Ruby ground her teeth together. It was a common belief amongst hunters that there was no God. For, although many examples existed among monsters, they could be killed, and God should not be able to be felled by humans. If there was a God, it certainly wouldn't be a monster. She wasn't sure… _I don't want to admit_ _that thing_ _to be my Goddess. I don't want to have to worship or serve_ _any_ _monster,_ the thought ran through her head.

"Well?" Malakai prompted, wondering if the mere act of proclaiming something above them was too much for the arrogant hunter.

Ruby let out a sigh and, through clenched teeth, said, "Very well… I hereby accept Nova as my goddess, and I promise to worship and serve her." She fumed for a moment as Malakai grinned cheekily at her.

 _"_ _Very vell, mein fräulein, I accept your service. Step forth und receive ze mark,"_ Nova said, trying her hardest to remain serious. But she couldn't help but snort at her expression as the smallish human glared at her, clearly not understanding what she said.

"Take off your armor," Malakai said, grin still firmly entrenched on his face.

"Woah, hold on! I thought this was a mark on the arm!" Ruby cried out, indignantly.

"It symbolizes faith in your goddess," Malakai said, snapping his fingers and gesturing towards her. Ordering her to remove her armor. She growled at him, but started to strip down nonetheless, ripping the armor pieces from her body and tossing them aside.

Once she was in nothing but her undergarments, she crossed her arms again and glared at Nova, waiting for the monster to tell her what to do. _"Hold out your arm,"_ Nova and Malakai said at the same time.

She hesitated, but did as she was told. She held out her arm to Nova, just as Zim had done, and waited. Nova bent down and inspected her arm, halting before she began the process of marking her. "By the way, because you haven't gone through any of the training, this'll likely hurt like a bitch," Malakai pointed out, just before Nova snapped her jaws around her arm.

"What?" Ruby managed to say before she felt Nova bite her. Pain blossomed throughout her being, spiking through her soul. She lifted her head back and screamed in pain, hoping, wishing that it would just end. Her mind shattered and she was too distracted to _feel_ the frenzy entering her body. Though it would not take over, it would coalesce on her arm, where Nova had bitten her.

Nova let her go, but she did not stop screaming. She couldn't, for the life of her, bring herself back together. She felt all her senses heighten before suddenly going dark. She lost control of her muscles and she collapsed to the ground. "Yup, there she goes. Maybe I should've mentioned it could kill you…" Malakai mumbled.

XXX

It was intoxicating, drawing him in. He had to go, he had to leave, he had to follow. There was nothing he could've done about it. The scent drew him in, directed him, lead him… and so he followed. He was confused by his own actions, at first, but slowly came to remember _why_ he had to follow the scent. It was _her_.

The moment he activated the apex state, his already heightened senses nearly quadrupled in sensitivity. In that very moment, in the apex state, he had felt as if he had drunk a thousand psycho serums. And in that moment of sublimity, he caught wind of something spectacular. Something he did not expect. _Her._

And when he deactivated the apex state, the scent still remained, though fainter. _She had come through here,_ he had realized. So he sought her out. He ran back out to the balloon that was loitering in the air for them and ordered the Palico operating the balloon to follow his instructions.

Now that he was in the air, the scent was stronger, just strong enough for him to track. The Palico carefully guided the balloon in the directions he ordered. The scent became stronger and stronger until their destination was in sight. _The Tower,_ Zim realized.

The Tower was an ancient structure built by an ancient civilization that had long since crumbled. The civilization left behind a few major structures, one being the immense Tower. Even from the height of the balloon, the Tower stretched far into the sky. Zim marveled at the complexity of the crumbling ruins.

It had remained standing for _thousands_ of years, long after the ancient civilization had perished. The design and immensity of the Tower only showed how advanced the ancients were when compared to his generation. It was well-known that all weapons had descended from surviving blueprints found in the few remnants of the ancient civilization. _Of course Kami would make his home on the site of his greatest victory,_ Zim grumbled to himself.

No one knew exactly why or how the greatest civilization to ever exist fell, but most were fairly certain it had something to do with the Elder One. Why Kami would attack the ancient civilization is unknown, but Zim had a pretty good idea. Kami didn't like competition.

The balloon landed a few meters away from the entrance to the Tower. Zim exited the balloon and ordered the Palico to leave. He would not be needing the balloon anymore. He entered the immense Tower and suddenly wished he had let the Palico at least take him to the top. But he wasn't sure if the balloon could've made it that high, so he resigned himself to walking.

The first floor was simple in design and he easily found the staircase. He pondered running up the stairs, but decided to conserve his strength and walk. He made it up the first few floors without a hitch, but the staircase ended at floor five.

The fifth floor was a decaying ballroom, a massive empty space with rotting tables pushed to the side. Zim paused in his search for the next staircase to observe the tables. They had been made from wood, but they were in surprisingly good condition for being left alone for several thousand years. The floor itself was made from tile, but the pattern had been eroded away. All that was left was a carpet of mold with a few bald spots were the once brilliant golden tile would've shone, if it had not been dampened by decay.

Chandeliers hung from the ceiling with strange objects attached to them. Instead of lanterns like Zim was used to, the chandeliers had strange bulbs attached to them. He wondered if that was how the ancients had made light. But he did not dote on that thought, he had a staircase to find.

Zim made his way up the staircase, stopping only once to marvel at a fantastic room filled with beautiful marble columns, that had managed to withstand the test of time better than the ballroom. _Humans have definitely not been in these rooms for several thousand years,_ Zim noted to himself as he continued climbing.

He noticed a pattern after the fifteenth floor, the staircases seemed to end after every five floors, forcing Zim to go and search for the next one. He walked through many brilliant rooms, some massively huge, others surprisingly small. One floor, the nineteenth, was entirely bedrooms.

The beds themselves had nearly entirely vanished, but the frames mostly remained. The glass windows in most of the rooms had shattered from some unknown force, likely the harsh winds that had buffeted the still standing tower for eons. Zim chuckled to himself as he kept climbing.

He began to tire around floor thirty, however. Before starting up to the staircase that would lead him to floor thirty-five, he paused in a marvelous living room. There was a large sofa that was still partially intact, so Zim had sat down on it. He was, at that moment, overwhelmed with the idea that someone who had been dead for a very long time had sat where he was now… and no one else since.

But eventually Zim took a deep breath and started up the staircase again. The air was becoming thin and he had no doubt that the Tower would stretch far above the clouds, even higher than Cathar and Heaven's Mount did. He suddenly wished that he had brought airweeds from his Moga. It was a surprisingly useful plant that, when consumed, would supply the consumer with oxygen, no matter where they were. And Zim had no doubt it would become very difficult to breath at the very top of the Tower.

 _Go away._

A simple, soft-spoken command, but seemed to echo throughout the entirety of the Tower. Zim couldn't help but frown and keep moving forward. He ignored the voice for the most part, knowing that _she_ wouldn't be happy about him being here. She clearly didn't think he would be able to track her down. But he had… and her scent compelled him to find her immediately.

 _Haven't you done enough?_

 _No, I haven't,_ the thought echoed through Zim's head, but didn't try and say it out loud. He wasn't sure where she was, and he didn't want to resort to having a yelling match with her. He would wait until he found her face to face, then he would speak.

 _Go away, I don't want to see you._

Zim cringed from her words, but forged onwards nonetheless. _I want… no, need, to see you, however,_ Zim said to himself as he made it to the staircase that would take him to the fortieth floor. He had come all this way just to speak with her. To clear the air of bad blood… and to apologize.

 _You killed him. You killed him. You killed him._

He _had_ killed him, and it was for this reason he needed to apologize. He needed to return to neutral terms with her. Otherwise… _It won't work without her,_ Zim had come to realize. He had been… thinking recently. A pressing concern presented itself to Zim the moment he returned to Alexander's funeral with Kami's head in tow. _There's no monster to keep the guild in check anymore… I might've ruined the balance._

 _You ruined everything._

Without Kami, the guild would start to extend its reach, until the entire world was under their control. There was no telling what they would do with nothing to stop them anymore. They could very well slaughter every single monster on the planet… even the peaceful ones. Zim hesitated before reaching the staircase that would take him to the forty-fifth floor.

 _I hate you._

And he deserved the hate. Only he could've ruined the balance like he did. Kami could not be slain by a hunter, even with the God Slaying sword. Only Zim, a monster, could topple the Elder One. He didn't need the God Slaying sword, and yet, it only made Kami's death more certain.

 _I hope you die a thousand horrible deaths._

And he would deserve each one. With their greatest obstacle removed, the guild would flourish enough to realize their dream of a monster-free world. In which case, Zim would have to restore the balance. In the only way he knew how.

 _Burn, burn, burn to ash._

He reached the staircase that would lead him to the fiftieth floor. Step after step he climbed to the very top of the Tower. _I must destroy them, force them to start from scratch, allowing for a new check to come to life,_ Zim decided when he stepped onto the roof of the Tower.

 _Give me one good reason I shouldn't slay you now._

He had heard her slithering throughout his climb, she had been scaling the Tower with him. She did not immediately reveal herself, and her echoing voice made it impossible to determine which direction she would appear from.

"Because I would let you," Zim called out. Not quite yelling, but not just simply declaring. _If you could,_ he kept that fact to himself. With the apex state, he had practically become invincible, not even _she_ could harm him anymore.

 _Have you come to finish the job?_

Her accusing tone sent shockwaves through him. _How have I let her fall so far?_ he wondered briefly. "Of course I haven't," he said softly. He realized that raising his voice was unnecessary, she could hear him just fine.

 _Then why have you come?_

"I came to apologize profusely… I… did not mean to harm you," Zim said, not hesitating. He would not lie; he had figured Kami may wish to fight him. No, he knew Kami would want to fight him. And when he killed the Elder One... he meant to do so. He was more in control in that moment of the frenzy than he would ever admit, he had not lost himself.

But he meant it when he said he never intended to hurt her. Despite everything… she had allowed him to live. She had left Dundorma alone. She had found him as interesting as he found her so. And she came back, knowing that he would be waiting for her, and trusting that he would not fight her. _I destroyed something,_ the thought had torn a hole in Zim's soul, _Can I only destroy? Is that all I'm good for?_

But his self-deprecation ended when a hissing chuckle could be heard. She clearly didn't believe him. And he figured that might be the case. And he could do nothing about it. If she didn't want to accept his apology… he wasn't sure what he was going to do.

 _But you did anyways._

"Yes," Zim said, not refuting her statement. He would not lie. That would only make things worse. The hissing chuckle was heard again.

 _Go away, I don't want to speak to you again… I hate you._

 _She must've realized that she cannot kill me anymore,_ he sighed to himself. Her words struck him deep, there had to be _some_ way to reconcile with her… "I won't pretend that I didn't know we would be fighting. I won't pretend to think that his death wouldn't hurt you. I won't even pretend to believe that any other being could've slain him except me," Zim started.

He paused thinking about how he should continue. She had said nothing, which could be as much of a good thing as it could be a bad thing. "So I won't offer you an apology anymore. Because I'm not sorry. But you _must_ understand…" he trailed off, trying to find the right word.

"That his death was inevitable. No matter the path we had taken, the end point would result in his death. Perhaps yours too. And for that, I hope you can realize that this path was best for both of us. If we had never met, it would only have been a matter of time until the guild sent me to slay Kami. And if we had met and you refused to agree to a peaceful ending… I would've won our fight," Zim affirmed. No lies.

It was silent for a few minutes more. So quiet, that not even the wind blew. Zim raised an eyebrow in the dead air, wondering if she had just left. Perhaps she did, and he wouldn't blame her for that. If she didn't want to hear what he had to say, she had the right to leave. Zim let out a sigh and moved towards the center of the roof of the Tower, unsure of what his next move should be. _I wonder if I can survive a fall off this thing in the apex state,_ he wondered.

Eventually, Zim could hear the harsh scraping sound of her climbing the side of the Tower. He did not turn around to look at her as she made her way to the top, stopping so that she could stand straight up, but her tail still swung off the edge of the Tower. Her wings flared to maintain her balance and her crystalline eyes regarded Zim with disdain. Neither approached the other, as Zim didn't even look at her, as if worried she may fly away if he did.

 _"_ _Inevitable, huh? Nothing that I could've done, nothing you could've done, nothing that he could've done… I should just be lucky that I'm alive, huh? Is that it? No regrets?"_ she hissed angrily.

"They say you shouldn't regret the actions you have no control over, but yet… I regret hurting you. But there was no path that led to all of us alive, so I cannot regret killing him. Just be thankful that I didn't have to kill you too," Zim all but whispered.

She glared at him, but heard the truth of his words. She was angry, yes, but she knew that, deep down, he was right. And she so desperately wanted him to be wrong. She wanted to tear him to pieces and scatter him to the march of time. _"Could you not have joined us? Could you not have switched sides?"_ the hiss came out quietly this time.

"And then what?" he growled, finally turning to face her, knowing that she wouldn't run. "If I had abandoned who I was at the time and switched sides, sure, I might've been happier. Kami might've lived, and you might've been happy too… but I would've died."

He extended his hand towards her, palm facing upwards, "The frenzy would've consumed me if I had abandoned my humanity. If I had gone with you… I would've never become _this_." He clenched his extended hand into a fist.

They stared at each other for some time. _"So what now? If you aren't here to apologize, then why are you here?"_ she hissed eventually. There was no use beating around the bush anymore.

"Though inevitable, and I don't have any regrets, killing Kami was a mistake," Zim cut the air with his hand, underlining his point. "And now… now that I'm _this_ , I have become something more than _just_ human. And now is the right time to switch sides."

Zim paused for just a moment before continuing, activating the apex state as he did, **"I want you to help me destroy the guild."** His voice deepened considerably, giving off an echo just like hers. Her eyes widened, not expecting that from him.

 _"_ _It's too late to switch sides, Demi,"_ she sighed, as she walked forward a few paces, stopping mere meters from him. _"You should've joined us sooner."_

Her using the term Kami had given him cut him deeper than anything else she had said. He felt as if they were strangers once more, he had really lost everything. But he might be able to re-forge their relationship from the ground up once more. **"It's never too late… I couldn't join your side any sooner than now. Now I have something to fight for, now I have a reason to need to annihilate the guild,** ** _now_** **is the right time."**

She was silent as she thought for some time. Seconds stretched into minutes as time marched ever forward. And Zim stood there and waited for her. He would always wait for her. Finally, she breathed a deep sigh, _"I cannot forgive you for what you have done. You have taken something from me, and although you have lost much in coming this far… I must take something from you in return."_

Zim raised an eyebrow in confusion. _Take something?_ She didn't mean… killing Nova, did she? Because he could not allow that. **"What do you have in mind?"** he said, skeptically. She moved forward a step, starting to close the distance between her and Zim, not saying a word.

Zim did not move from his spot as she slowly and deliberately stepped forward. He wasn't sure if she was trying to be intimidating, or something else. But he stayed put, even as her towering form was hardly an inch from his own. And then she did something he did not expect.

She fell on him, pinning him to the ground. He didn't even flinch as he hit the hard ground or when her limbs pressed down hard on his own. The apex state protected him from even her immense weight. She leaned down so that her face hovered a mere foot from his own. Her long tongue flicked out of her maw, nearly slapping Zim in the face. But he did not flinch.

 _"_ _You,"_ was her simple response when she finally decided to speak. Zim stared up at her, confusion evident on his face. He wasn't sure how to respond to that, or even what it meant. _"I am taking_ _you_ _, Zim."_

It was too cruel to slay his goddess, or anyone that he cared about. And he could not pay for his sins with his own death, or even the loss of limbs. So, he had to pay in a different way. And she knew just how. A grin stretched across her toothy maw when she saw realization light up in his eyes.

 **"** **I see…"** he said slowly, not necessarily hesitant or even against the idea. Just a bit surprised. If this is what it took to gain her as an ally, then he would gladly sacrifice himself. And, in that moment, the world seemed to stop turning.

XXX

 **Yup, there ya go. So, who at least had the idea he had managed to track Fuun? Yeah, I expected that. It was a bit sudden, but hopefully his explanation cleared up any confusion (or suddenness) from the last chapter. So… ahem, we see here Zim's decision to take Kami's place as the being keeping humans from dominating the world. We also delve into a bit of the Monster Hunter lore; I swear I did not make any of the ancient civilization thing up… that's all a part of the Monster Hunter story. There's a surprising amount and it's surprisingly interesting. For those of you who are confused, there is a wiki…**

 **Anyways, Ruby's in a spot of trouble. Zim, who already had the frenzy coursing through him and thus didn't need any of the "training" Malakai spoke of, wasn't aware of how dangerous receiving the mark was. Yeah, she could be dead. And Zim is in a bit of a… situation himself. Though his is significantly less deadly than Ruby's… but, stay tuned until next time to see whether Ruby lives or dies and Zim announcing his intentions to Malakai and Nova!**


	15. Chapter 15

Chapter 15 - Frühjahrsmüdigkeit:

Author's Note:

 **Fair warning, this is a long chapter. Like, insanely long. So… is Ruby alive? Will Zim be able to make it back? And what will the others think of his plan to destroy the guild? All that and more, please, enjoy!**

XXX

 _Frühjahrsmüdigkeit: A sense of listlessness brought on by the coming of Spring_

 _Static_

 _What happened? Pain blossomed through my chest as I tried to right myself. My eyes were still clenched tightly; I didn't want them to open. Somehow holding them closed seemed to dim the pain. I didn't argue with that logic as I tried to sit up again. I felt blindly behind me, finding a sturdy wall. I tried to use it to prop myself up, but I only slipped down._

 _Why was the wall slippery? I coughed loudly as blood welled in my throat, forcing me to spit it out of my mouth. I groaned as I finally managed to put my back against the wall and prop myself up. Now that I was sitting, I could feel the aching more acutely, my eyes still shut tight._

 _Where am I? I couldn't quite remember… I coughed again, more blood exiting my mouth. I cringed from the metallic taste. I groaned again as pain spiked through my system once more, through my arms, my legs, and especially my chest. Have I been stabbed? I wouldn't be able to tell unless I opened my eyes… and I didn't want to do that yet. Fear of even worse pain kept me from opening them._

 _So I focused on the sounds around me instead, praying that they would distract me from the pain. I could hear people, a lot of people. They were just walking… they seemed to be everywhere. Could they not see me? Why aren't they helping me? I opened my mouth to call out, but I only choked on more blood. I couldn't even scream._

 _Finally, I knew that I had to open my eyes. Perhaps I would be able to tell where I was, what happened, and why no one is helping me. My eyes opened slowly, the picture still blurry. To my surprise, pain didn't slam into me, but when the pictured cleared, I jumped… causing my wounds to ache._

 _Yes, wounds. I had not been stabbed, as there was no blood, but I could see bruises. Angry, purple bruises that tainted my pale, white skin. All across my arms, down my legs, and all over my chest. And I was naked. Suddenly, I remembered what had happened… I had been stripped and beaten._

 _And I remembered where I was too. I was in an alleyway, mere meters away from the crowd of people. And I knew what city I was in too, Dundorma. I lived here, sort of. I was an orphan, abandoned by her parents and left to rot in the streets. Alone._

 _It made sense that they beat me. I must've stolen something from them, I couldn't quite remember what I had done. But they had no doubt been hunters. Well-respected hunters too if no one noticed them beating the shit out of me. They must've just turned a blind eye; the alleyway wasn't exactly far enough away from the mass of people to get away with murder. Only I was still alive._

 _"_ _Alive," I breathed, only to immediately regret doing so. Blood dribbled from my mouth again as each breath stung something fierce. I curled up, crying out in pain, only to hurt more. Why did everything hurt?_

 _I breathed heavily, ignoring the sting. The bruises were mostly clustered across my chest, I could feel something broken inside. Had my ribs been snapped? More than one must've been broken if it hurt this damn much. I tried to get up, only to slip down the wall again. I turned to see the wall covered in a strange liquid, I wasn't quite sure what it was._

 _I looked down at the ground and noticed shattered pieces of glass. I had been lucky that none of them had pierced my skin, as I was sitting right on top of the pile. I put two and two together and figured that the hunters who had beat me must've thrown a bottle at me. I was lucky not to be dead._

 _I tried to get up again, this time pushing off of the ground instead of the slick wall. I couldn't push myself up. Or, at least, I wasn't strong enough to do so. When I tried to use my legs, they protested loudly, when I tried to use my arms, the bones grinded against each other angrily. I was broken, trapped on the dirty ground with no one to save me._

 _And why should they? I was just a pitiful orphan girl, nowhere to go, nowhere to hide, I had nothing and I deserved nothing. Which is why I stole. I never had a problem with it. Why should I care if I take from people who have enough to support themselves, and more? They should be giving it to me anyways, it's unfair for them to hoard it all._

 _Selfish, greedy, gluttonous… "Damn you all!" I cried out, only to choke once more. I hate them, I hate all of them. They look down at me and just walk by, they cannot feel pity. I'm just a_ _nuisance_ _to them! Maybe I should start killing them. Why should I care if it's a crime? What will they do? Lock me in prison, where they will feed and clothe me? Perhaps I should kill a few of them._

 _A shiver ran down my spine. It was cold out and I had no clothes. My sight was starting to wane as I struggled to keep my eyes open. I knew that I shouldn't fall asleep. I would surely die if I did. So I did my best to remain awake, but I was struggling._

 _"_ _You poor thing," a calm voice brought me back to the real world. I looked up and waited for the picture to sharpen so I could see who was talking. It was a woman wearing a beautiful red and gold cloak. She looked young, maybe not even thirty, but her hair was pure white and pulled into a bun on the top of her head. Only a few strands of hair escaped the bun and fell over her face._

 _The woman leaned down and looked me over. She poked and prodded at me, testing where I was broken. As she did so, she mumbled to herself, "Age, approximately six. Height, negligible. Weight, approximately fifty pounds. Arms, dislocated. Legs, broken. Ribs, three broken… two cracked. That'll do." She smiled down at me, still bending down, and said, "How would you like to come with me? I need someone of your… current predicament."_

 _I stared up at her, confused as to why she needed a broken child. But I didn't argue, if she wanted to take me in, I would gladly go with her. It couldn't be any worse than the hell I'm already in. "Please," I coughed out more blood. She gave me a concerned look and pulled something out of a pouch on her side. Another cloak!_

 _She draped it around me and picked me up. I must be very light if she has no trouble carrying me. She then began to walk away, ignoring the stares of the people around her. "What's your name, child?" she asked._

 _It was at that moment that I realized I didn't have a name. I never had a name. As an orphan, I never bothered with a name. "I don't know," I spat up more blood, some splashing in her face. I placed my hand over my mouth, worried that she would become angry at me for spitting blood at her._

 _But she didn't seem the least bit peeved. She balanced me in one arm and wiped the blood off her face. She brought it close to her brilliant amber eyes and said, "What a beautiful red your blood is, don't you think? How about I call you… Ruby."_

 _I smiled up at her, happy to have a name… and a home. It was more than I could ever ask. I never would ask why she took pity on me. I would never question her orders. I would do as she said because she saved me. I was in her debt. "You can call me Mother, child," the woman smiled as she whisked me away._

 _Static_

 _"_ _But Mother…" I said softly. I was trying my hardest not to complain, but it was difficult. Mother had taken me back to her home, a gorgeous mansion, where she immediately led me underground to a huge room she called her "lab." She had told me to sit and hold out my arm… but I could not even stretch it the slightest._

 _Mother sighed and said, "Child, it is for the best. No, please, hold out your arm." When I did not, Mother grabbed the appendage. I wished that I could tell her what was wrong, but it still hurt to talk, I was lucky not to bleed from the mouth when I last spoke._

 _Her grip on my arm tightened and I gave her a confused look. What was she doing? My eyes widened in shock and pain when she suddenly pulled my arm out, bones grinding against each other, before pushing forward so that there was an audible crack. Tears leaked from my eyes, it hurt so much! "Fuck, damn it!" I cried out, unable to contain myself. Blood followed the words._

 _But what hurt most was not the blood, but the blunt blow to the back of my head. I looked up, tears still dripping down my face, to see the disapproving glare of Mother, her hand still raised. She had hit me… "Don't curse, Ruby. You're better than that," she said sternly. I nodded slowly, wishing that I could hold my head to ease the pain._

 _The arm that she had just pulled seemed to be moving a bit easier, but it still ached. She gripped my other arm, intent on doing the same thing. Before I could even beg her not to do it, she had forced my arm out and cracked it back in. I cried out, no real words this time, praying that the curses didn't spring from my mouth. I didn't want to be hit again._

 _Eventually, the pain dulled and all that was left was aches. I could move my arms, but I was too tired to do so, so I remained still. She turned to my legs next, poking and prodding them, eliciting groans and moans of pain from me. Why did everything have to hurt? "I'm going to fix your legs next," she said softly as she walked away from me. Where was she going?_

 _I could hear rummaging as she dug through drawers and cabinets, tossing aside useless things, and putting others back carefully. She came back with a large needle, filled with red liquid. "Lay down, please," she said kindly, brandishing the needle slightly._

 _I hesitantly laid down on my back, my arms were already beginning to feel better, but I don't think they'll be fully healed for a few more days. She began to touch my thigh, poking and prodding it. Then there was a sharp pain as the large needle was inserted into my thigh, and the liquid was inserted into my left thigh._

 _I groaned as the needle was removed from my leg, only for me to see she had only injected half of the needle's contents. She walked over to the other side of me and repeated the process on my right thigh. I was ready for the prick, however, and braced myself as the strange feeling of liquid rushing through my legs hit me. But finally, it was over._

 _"_ _Whoever did this to you dislocated your spine and broke both of your legs… under normal circumstances, you shouldn't have been able to ever walk again. But hopefully this prototype will take effect soon," she said. I could quite understand what she was mumbling about. Prototype?_

 _Suddenly, I could no longer feel my legs. They had gone completely numb. "Mother!" I cried out, only for me to break out into a fit of coughing and hacking up the red liquid I had been named after. Mother waited beside me until I had finished coughing, then handed me a plain rag to wipe my mouth with._

 _"_ _Your legs should've gone numb, by now. Which means you're ready for the second shot," she said, leaving my side once more. What second shot? I watched as best I could from my laying position as she opened a cabinet and pulled out a second needle. Oh god, that one is twice as big as the last._

 _I felt her warm grip on my neck as the cold needle slipped into my skin. And then everything went black, but I could still hear her mumble, "Hopefully this will fix your ribs too."_

 _Static_

 _My eyes popped open. I was warm… and in someone's bed. I groaned as I sat up. I could move! My arms were working properly, my legs were moving, and my chest no longer hurt. Whatever Mother did to me worked wonders. I climbed out of the massive bed, it must be hers, and realized she had dressed me. I was wearing a small dress, a simple black skirt and red shirt._

 _She had also put my brown hair up into a bun, just like hers. I took a look around, hoping to spot Mother. She wasn't here. I figured she wouldn't be too mad if I left the room and explored a bit. I opened her bedroom door and walked out into the pure white hallway._

 _I could tell that the mansion was huge. Only a meter away from the room was a banister that, when I looked down, I could see that I was on the third floor. The banister made a complete circle around the third floor, just like it did on the second and fourth floors, so that I could walk in a circle all day without ever leaving the floor._

 _I wandered around, not seeing any sign of anyone, until I found the staircase. It spiraled downward and upward, as there was another floor above this one. The staircase was made of polished mahogany, and I was very afraid of touching it. It was so pristine that I worried that my fingerprints would tarnish the wood. I descended the stairs, careful not to touch the railing. Above me hung a crystalline chandelier, though none of the candles had been lit. All the light was coming from the sun, through a massive bay window next to the staircase. It was still bright outside._

 _I reached the bottom floor and looked around. Hardwood floor stretched as far as I could see, it just as polished as the staircase was. The staircase dropped me right beside the door, but thoughts of leaving never crossed my mind. I wanted to stay here forever. I continued my exploring._

 _I could hear muffled voices coming from a few rooms over, so I followed the noise. Was it Mother? I couldn't tell, but it sounded like more than one person. That made sense, this house was so big that it couldn't be for just one person alone. "And me," I whispered to myself. I could speak again, without hacking up blood, which gave me the courage to step out of the huge kitchen and into a living room of sorts._

 _There was a huge fireplace against one of the walls, and large sofas surrounding the hearth. There was hardly a place open for anyone to sit, as the furniture was lined with people. Correction, children. "Did Mother take you all in too?" I asked._

 _None of them responded immediately. They didn't actually seem to notice me. They were all busy looking at the fireplace. I raised an eyebrow, but didn't bother repeating myself. Perhaps they were told not to talk to me until Mother arrived. Perhaps they didn't even know I was here._

 _One of the children, an older boy, by the look of it, with ebony skin, approached me. "You're the new one?" he asked stiffly, as if he wasn't used to talking. So they do know about me. Why weren't the others addressing me, then?_

 _"_ _I suppose so…" I mumbled, not feeling welcome. If they just wanted to stare at the fireplace, then I was more than willing to go back up to Mother's room and wait._

 _"_ _How bad was it?" he asked. I made a small, confused sound. He chuckled and said, "The last two kids Mother picked up were all beaten badly, broken bones at least. Mother took them in, fixed them up, and well… here we are. So, I figured she was looking for test subjects for a new serum she was making."_

 _"_ _So she picks up poor, beaten kids off the street and fixes them? Then they can stay here?" I asked. I wouldn't mind if that was the case, that would mean the worst was already past._

 _"_ _Well, not exactly. Yeah, we can stay here, but we either have to participate in her experiments, or clean. Either way, it's not a bad life," he shrugged._

 _"_ _Sure as hell beats living off the streets," I smirked._

 _He gave me a confused look, "Mother says you shouldn't curse…" he whispered. He must've learned the hard way. I had actually forgotten, man… that'll take some getting used to._

 _"_ _Right… so she gives us a choice between being experimented on or cleaning?" I asked. The obvious choice was cleaning… I wouldn't want to be used like some sort of lab rat._

 _But the boy shook his head, "Not exactly. She gives newcomers a test, and if they pass, they become a lab rat… and if they fail, they're put to work."_

 _"_ _What about you?" I asked hesitantly, hoping he wouldn't become angry._

 _"_ _I'm a lab rat. All lab rats and potential rats are put on the third floor, which is no doubt where you woke up. What's your name by the way? I'm Ebon," he said, never smiling, but extended his hand in a friendly greeting._

 _"_ _Ruby," I said, accepting the pleasantry._

 _"_ _Ruby…" he said as if testing it out on his tongue. "That's a nice name, Mother really outdid herself on you, she usually chooses all the names here. So, uh, why did you get picked?"_

 _I shut my eyes for a moment, trying to remember what Mother had told me. "Broken legs, dislocated arms, and three broken ribs, two cracked," I repeated as if reading off a medical sheet. He nodded, as if impressed by me surviving such injuries._

 _He opened his mouth to say something, but Mother arrived at that moment, silencing him. He backed away from me, going back to his spot on one of the sofas. I turned to look at Mother, only to find she had changed her outfit. No longer was she wearing a fancy cloak, but the cold, hard steel of hunter armor. Was she a hunter?_

 _The armor itself was complex, with many pieces spiking off the main chest plate. It was a striking gold and black color, but it lacked a helmet. "Ruby, Ebon, Gemini, come, please," she ordered._

 _Ebon walked up beside me as two younger females approached on his side. Gemini must refer to the both of them. We followed Mother to a different staircase, one that I vaguely recognized as the one that led down into her lab. The lab was still as dark and cold as it was when I first came here, only this time I was more aware of my surroundings. Which only made the dimly lit, freezing cave even less inviting than last time._

 _"_ _We're going to start with the test, I'm sure Ebon already filled you in?" Mother said. Ebon and I nodded in response. "Excellent. You already passed the first two tests. The first being able to accept my special potion, and the second having the desire to explore, despite not knowing where you were. Now for the third and final test."_

 _I sat down on the cold, steel table again, wondering what she was going to do to me this time. I watched her pull a needle from one of the nearby drawers. Ah, another shot. This one was filled with purple liquid, however, so I assumed it did something different. This time, I offered my arm when she asked for it, as I could move it freely._

 _The needle once again slipped into my skin and I felt the liquid being deposited. I felt a rush of energy surge through my body. It hit me so hard that I nearly leapt off the table in surprise. It felt great. I felt like I could run for hours and never get tired, fight men three times my size, and even punch through walls!_

 _But I sat as still as I could, only fidgeting occasionally… it was difficult to keep my body from jerking in random directions, as if I had been electrocuted and my muscles weren't quite my own anymore. Mother waited a few minutes before she began to check me over. What she was looking for, I had no idea._

 _Eventually, Ebon said, "I think she's taking it well."_

 _Mother nodded, "I believe so. Now we just have to see what it did." She beckoned me to follow her and the others. I hopped off the table, the impact of me hitting the ground sent shockwaves through my body. I could_ _feel_ _everything. It wasn't just my body that had been enhanced, my senses, my mind… everything felt tuned to a higher degree than they ever had before._

 _She led us through several rooms before exiting in an enormous arena. She turned to me and said, "I gave you an extremely powerful stimulant designed to enhance a certain area of your brain. At the moment, you no doubt feel stronger and faster than ever, but that feeling will fade. However, whatever the stimulant has done to your brain should never leave you. Ebon, if you would demonstrate, please."_

 _Ebon stepped back, distancing himself from the rest of us. He stretched his hand outwards and shut his eyes tightly in concentration. He stood there, quivering, for a moment and I began to wonder if he was just having an aneurism, but then_ _ **fire**_ _sprung to life in his hand. My eyebrows skyrocketed, "Fire! I can control fire?!"_

 _Ebon let out a shaky breath and the fire faded. "Perhaps," Mother said, "It seems to affect others in different ways. Gemini, for instance, can communicate between the two of them over vast distances with a single thought, though I doubt you have that power."_

 _ **Power,**_ _the thought ran rampant in my mind. Did she give me super powers? "Why are you doing all this?" I asked carefully, wondering if she'd actually answer me._

 _"_ _That's classified, I'm afraid, my dear," she said, smiling kindly. Damn, of course not. There was probably some military application, however. "Now, I want to see what you can do. Go ahead, just concentrate and see what happens."_

 _I let out a breath and concentrated hard, trying to see what happened. I could feel energy coursing through my being… but I could never quite grasp it. I held out my hand, as Ebon had done, and tried to concentrate. Nothing happened. Mother was so disappointed in me._

 _Static_

 _"_ _Again," Mother said sternly. Two years had passed since my failure to call upon any type of power. And I trained night and day, still trying to call upon anything. And with no success._

 _A lot had changed since I had arrived. Both Ebon and Gemini had passed away… the twins had fallen so ill they could not move. First one, then the other. Their connection is what made them susceptible to the other's disease. Then Ebon literally combusted, lighting himself on fire by accident when he tried to call on too much power._

 _Many children had passed through Mother's hands, some made it into the program and others didn't. But one thing was obvious, the program was too rigorous for many of the children. Even after two years, it was just me, alone, with Mother in the training arena. I had watched over a dozen children be accepted into the program, only for them all to die in horrific ways._

 _Mother never seemed concerned with their passing, using their deaths to influence the next batch of the strange injection each child was presented with. But Mother still had me, and although I seemed like a failure, I was the only one to survive the trials._

 _And they weren't easy ones, either. Each contained a difficult task, such as balancing above a pit of spikes while walking along a thin rope, others were feats of strength, and some still were bizarre puzzles that boggled the mind… until time ran out and something exploded. The tasks were meant to improve the child's powers, but since I seemed to have none… the trials did nothing for me._

 _So I spent my spare time training, knowing that Mother would not give up on me, so I should not give up on me either. She would always watch my progress carefully, giving tips and hints for the upcoming trials so that I knew what to expect. What I should work on. I was grateful for that, at least._

 _I hardly ever left the lab and I hardly ever slept. But, throughout it all, I was at least physically and mentally fit, more so than any other eight-year-old. Even ones destined to become hunters. That was something that I suspected the reason for all this testing was, Mother was trying to create a new line of super soldiers, better than hunters. She had, so far, failed._

 _"_ _Again," she hissed as she took a step back, giving me space. I sighed and picked up my wooden sword off the hard floor. I was shockingly bad at swordplay, but that didn't stop Mother from forcing me to practice. I was too slow, my strikes weren't accurate, and they were weak._

 _But I never dared to argue with Mother. She knew best, after all. I got into an offensive stance, at least a poor excuse for one, and charged Mother. Mother was, for all intents and purposes, an amazing dualist. Her sword was larger than mine, though more because she was larger than me, and she swung so fast and so accurately, that one had no hope of dodging or blocking._

 _Once again she beat back my attack and struck me in the chest. She always tried to dull her blows, as I knew the wooden blade could leave a nasty mark if used with all her immense strength. Sometimes I wondered why she didn't use herself to experiment on._

 _But I refuted that thought. She definitely had used herself as an experiment. There was no way plain training could make someone so fast and strong. She had to have used the serum on herself as well. I doubt even a trained professional would be able to keep up with her. Sometimes I wondered why she wasn't a hunter herself, as she often spoke to me as if I was a hunter in training… if she had personal experience in the subject._

 _Then again, perhaps she had been a hunter. It was difficult to tell… with Mother. At one moment, she seemed no older than her body showed, mid-thirties or so, but the next she seemed to be an old woman. Her body was definitely young, but her mind was old._

 _I wouldn't tell her this, but I spend a lot of time in her huge library, when I'm not training. There are scrolls in that library, well over a hundred years old, written in_ _ **her**_ _handwriting. At times, it seems like a coincidence… others it seems to be the only answer._

 _She twirled around my clumsy attack and rapped me on the back with her blade. I tumbled to the ground once more, blade dropping out of my hands. She sighed and said, "Again!"_

 _"_ _God fucking damn it!" I roared, turning around and swinging my blade as hard as I could. She easily parried my blow, twisting my sword out of my hands with a fancy move, and then rent me from shoulder to hip… before she wacked me as hard as she could on my arm._

 _I fell to the ground with a harsh cry. I could feel the bruise forming on my arm, knowing that it would be some time until it went away. She shook her head, clearly disappointed, like she always was, "This is the three-hundredth and sixty-eighth time I've disciplined you for cursing… when will you get it through that thick head of yours?"_

 _I glared at her in defiance, "Never." It was the one thing she actually appreciated, my drive. My will. I would never give up, no matter how many times she beat me down. And even if I never unlocked my power, I would be stronger than anyone else._

 _She smirked at me and said, "We're done here." Then walked away. Sometimes, there was no lesson to be learned. Sometimes, it was just as simple as fight until you can fight no more. Sometimes… sometimes I wonder if it's all a lost cause. But I never let that thought be formed into words._

 _Static_

 _Another two years passed and I was becoming desperate. Still nothing had emerged within me. Mother had also started to lose hope as more and more children died. I knew for each life that perished in her damned… darned tests, she saved three others and let them stay in her home, for a measly price of a few chores. She had still refused to tell any of us what this was all for._

 _I stood in a new arena, one that she had installed with a new fire in her eyes. The trials were becoming few and far between, my training had nearly slowed to a halt, and I had more time than ever on my hands. Still, I was present for each child that was to be put into the program, and she was still picking up one or two that were compatible each week._

 _Although they died less horribly now, the serum she had designed had started making them sick, and Mother didn't know why. I had thought she was going to abandon the project when a few weeks ago, she picked up no one. I was dreadfully confused. It either meant she had found no one, or she had given up._

 _I almost wanted her to give up when again and again no one new arrived to the house. All the other children in the program, except for me, died in that time frame. But I never quite stopped training. And I was still poor with a blade… but I never gave up._

 _I had watched a new passion emerge. She began to study monsters. Occasionally, I would wander through the lab on my way to the training arena and see her fiddling with vials of blood, or monster parts. Some, I recognized, others I had never seen before… not even in her library. She always ignored my presence as I walked through, so I never bothered to ask what she was doing._

 _Eventually, sounds of construction kept me awake long hours into the night. I knew she was expanding her lab, but I wasn't sure what she was putting in. I soon discovered it was a different type of arena. The construction had been completed nearly a year ago, and Mother had forbidden all from going anywhere near it. What made this arena different than the other one?_

 _As the number of children she brought in started to decline, the number of adults that started to appear increased. Occasionally, when I was first brought here, Mother would bring people over with fancy clothes and they would eat and talk deep into the night. They were mind-numbingly boring, so I had avoided them with a passion._

 _But these adults were… different, somehow. They did not wear fancy clothes, rather rags, and they were always female. Always female… I had never thought anything strange about it, until I noticed that they would disappear into the labs and never return. Was Mother killing them? She was always careful to cover her tracks, locking herself in the labs with the women and then saying they had left the next morning. I had no reason to report her to anyone… I had no proof. So, I ignored it._

 _But the number of adults coming into our home started to increase further and further, until the children stopped coming and the stream of adults never stopped. Mother seemed to abandon us too, shutting herself off in her lab all day, ignoring everyone else. Soon, it was just me and a few others left, none of them were a part of the program._

 _Which is why it came as a surprise when Mother asked to see all of us in the arena. But not the training arena, the new one. I was immediately suspicious, but the others were just happy Mother was still willing to notice them. We gathered in the new arena, large doors surrounded the colosseum like room. I could hear scratching on the other side of each door. Oh no…_

 _Mother stood on a small outcrop a few meters above the actual arena and called out to us, "Ruby, I'm afraid that, unless you can show some progress here and now, I am shutting down the project. Unfortunately, that means that you will have to be… eliminated." The others turned to me, fear evident in their eyes._

 _Shit… she was using the others to try and elicit a response. I could hear one of the large doors opening. She was willing to kill all the others, just to force me to release my power. If I even had one… if not… well, the program was cancelled and I would have to die. Killing two birds with one stone. It made sense, in a morbid sort of way, if she was moving away from the project, then she no longer had a reason to keep taking in children, nor keeping them around. Myself included._

 _A monster I recognized as a Great Jaggi stalked out of its pen and glared at us. This wasn't a training arena… it was a monster fight ring. The monster let out a squawk and charged at us. We scattered, but it still chomped down on one of the children. Training kicked in, thankfully, and I pulled the knife I kept on my person at all times from my side. It was small, and wouldn't likely harm a monster of that size, but it was all I had. It would have to do._

 _I rushed the monster, knowing that if I could distract it, the others might be able to make it out alive. After all, Mother only wanted me. But the monster just batted me away with its tail. I landed hard as it snapped up another one. I groaned, feeling my old wounds flare up. The potion had never quite eliminated the aches from my beating… nor the bruises from my intense training._

 _I struggled to my feet to see the monster cornering the last child. How had it killed so many so quickly? I had to do something. The monster lifted its head and let out a victory screech as I looked down at my knife. My knife… if this didn't work, I was dead. I gripped the blade gently, careful not to cut myself, and took aim._

 _The knife flew through the air at blinding speed, faster than I could nearly track, but it lodged itself in the monster's eye. It let out a pained squeal as the shook its head and tried to dislodge it. The monster stumbled and fell to the ground. The knife was long and I had managed to bury it to the hilt, which meant the Jaggi had a brain injury… and unless it could remove the knife, its regeneration couldn't save it._

 _The remaining child rushed to my side, thanking me for saving her, but I wasn't paying any attention to her. I watched the monster writhe on the ground in immense pain as it tried to heal itself, only sealing its fate. Finally, the monster lay dead. I approached it and pulled my knife free._

 _I heard the sound of flesh slapping against flesh as I looked up to see Mother clapping loudly, "Brilliant display, my child. Do it again." I raised an eyebrow, wondering if she would really loose another monster on us. But it was not the case, as she pulled something from a table near her, throwing it up into the air. Almost if by instinct, I flicked the knife upwards striking the plate dead center, shattering it into a million pieces._

 _"_ _That would be why we were having no success with your training. It would seem as if your ability lies in ranged weapons, you can never miss," she declared. I felt my heart soar as I collected my knife. She wasn't cancelling the program… I was the first success to go through the trials. "We start your training again tomorrow," she declared, turning and walking away._

XXX

Malakai let out a loud sigh, leaning back on the ground. They had been sitting and waiting for _anything_ to happen for nearly three hours. Ruby was still alive, but in a deep sleep, and Zim was still gone. No one knew where he went or when he was coming back. He might not _be_ coming back, but Malakai refused to consider that a possibility.

"Well… what now?" Dr. Steele asked. She too had grown bored, and she was starting to grow worried. It had been a very long time since she had left the Wycademy. She hoped nothing bad had happened.

And it wasn't like Bherna was safe either. Malakai, being the only hunter protecting the village and the Wycademy, was gone and they were all in immense danger. But still, they both remained. Despite desperately wanting to leave. "I'm not sure if she's going to wake up anytime soon. And Zim could be back… tomorrow, for all we know," Malakai said, putting his hands behind his head and using them like make-shift pillows.

"So you think we should just leave?" Dr. Steele asked.

"We have to face the facts, Bherna is in danger without me. We can leave her here, it isn't like Nova is gonna hurt her," Malakai explained. Dr. Steele was unable to argue with that logic and nodded slowly. "Besides, Zim can go fu-" he trailed off when he heard the sound of huge bat wings beating.

He sat up and looked at Nova to see her still firmly on the ground, nearly asleep. But she too lifted her head in confusion when the wing beats became louder and louder. Something was approaching, fast. Malakai stood quickly, drawing his weapons as Nova shook the sleep from her body, growling lowly as she did.

Malakai's eyes widened comically as a massive black dragon descended into the Sanctuary. _A Fatalis!_ he realized when the crystalline eyes locked with his own. Nova let out a loud roar as she stepped forward, putting Ruby beneath her form, partially protecting her. But Malakai figured that the Fatalis was strong enough to take whatever it wanted.

He twirled his weapons nervously, calculating the odds. With Nova's help, they could prevail… probably. He had heard what Zim had done and knew that if a Fatalis was angry enough, it was impossible to stop one. He vaguely noted Dr. Steele walking up beside him. "Is that Zim?" she deadpanned.

Malakai's eyes widened when he saw a human shape _leap_ from the Fatalis' back and landed with a loud thud on the ground. Black mist swirled around the human's body as red eyes glinted in the dim light. _Yeah, that's Zim alright,_ Malakai sighed. But he did not lower his weapons, nor did Nova drop her guard.

Zim looked up at Fuun and said, **"You're much faster than the balloons."** The signs of the apex state faded quickly after that statement, his eyes returned to their brilliant green and the frenzy no longer swarmed around him. "I nearly fell off…"

 _"_ _Baka, I told you that I was fast,"_ Fuun smirked, remaining on all fours so that her head hovered just above Zim's. She didn't seem the least bit concerned about Nova and Malakai. Or the fact that he had drawn weapons in her presence.

 _"_ _Vhy ist_ _she_ _here, mein Knight?"_ Nova growled. She pawed at the ground, as if she was going to charge, but clearly decided against it. Alone, she stood no chance against Fuun. Even with Malakai, Zim would be able to stop both of them before either could get anywhere near the Fatalis.

"Because I will it. I'm sorry, my goddess, but you'll have to deal with this intrusion," Zim said evenly. He showed no fear, in his own eyes, he was greater than Nova, and even Fuun. He was calling the shots now, and it was clear they could do nothing about it.

"Now, hold on a moment, don't you think it's a bit dangerous to bring a _Fatalis_ here? Have you lost your mind?" Malakai growled.

Zim opened his mouth to say something, but Fuun cut him off. _"I will not harm the Yoi, she cannot harm me thus I don't need to harm her."_

 _"_ _Cannot harm you? Insolent… little scheisse! I vill not be beaten by a freak like you!"_ Nova growled. Her wings extended and Zim could see her muscles bunching together, getting ready to leap at Fuun.

 _"_ _Scheisse? Your tongue amuses me, Yoi, perhaps you should give up before you even begin… lest I become angry,"_ Fuun snarled. Zim smacked a hand against his head. Maybe this _was_ a bad idea.

 _"_ _Zat's it, you're dead,"_ Nova snarled, leaping forward. Fuun seemed to smirk as she lifted herself up on two legs, clearly preparing to attack. Fire danced in her maw, preparing a massive fireball, that may very well fry Nova. If Zim didn't move in the way.

Apex state active once more, he slammed into his goddess, knocking her down and held up his hand in a 'stop' motion, blocking the screaming fireball that spewed from Fuun's jaws. The fire ball exploded on contact with Zim, but he remained completely unharmed. **"Enough,"** he growled.

Malakai, who had never sheathed his weapons, dropped back towards Ruby to make sure she was still asleep. She was. Dr. Steele had backed away towards the exit, suddenly fearing for her life. Though Zim seemed strong enough to contain the two elder dragons… she didn't want to die in the crossfire. But she didn't run, not yet at least.

Fuun snorted and dropped back to the ground, _"I did not start this,"_ she hissed. Zim glared at her, clearly admonishing her for the fireball. In response, the Fatalis slithered forward and said, _"I am sorry, for harming you."_ Her tongue flicked out of her maw and trailed down the arm Zim still had extended towards her, as if she was kissing the wound better… though there was no wound to speak of.

Zim did not look at her, however, his eyes locked onto his goddess. The blazing red orbs were narrowed in an intense glare, waiting to see what she would do. She backed away slightly, curling her wings back into her spare limbs and relaxed a great deal. _"Very vell, if you believe zat she vill not harm us, zhen I too apologize for attacking,"_ she growled out hesitantly.

 **"** **Good,"** Zim sighed, but did not let the apex state fade. Malakai gave the two monsters a suspicious look, but shrugged and sheathed his weapons. They would be useless anyways. He walked a bit closer to Zim, taking care to remain closer to Nova than to Fuun.

"So, uh, what brought all _this_ on?" he asked, gesturing towards Fuun. The Fatalis bared her teeth, but did not attack nor respond verbally in any way. Malakai crossed his arms as he waited for an explanation.

Zim turned to him, red eyes never losing their intensity, and proclaimed, **"We are going to destroy the guild."** The effect of those words was apparent immediately.

XXX

 _Static_

 _Another two years passed. And something strange began to happen to Mother. Just a few months ago, she fell ill and then vanished into her lab. I wondered if she was dying and was searching for a way to prolong her life. I would never know, as she locked me out of the lab. But I hoped she wasn't going to die… someone needed to take care of the few of us who are left._

 _But the past few months, I have been alone. Well, mostly alone. There was still the one other child who had made it through that trial two years ago, plus a few new ones she had picked up. But I was the eldest._

 _I sighed and stretched as I awoke from my slumber. My sleeping schedule had evened out over the past few years. No longer did I only sleep an hour or two a day, but seven or eight. Without Mother breathing down my back, sometimes I had nothing better to do but sleep. But that didn't mean I had been slacking on my training… it was just a bit more difficult to train without access to the arena connected to the shut off lab._

 _Mother had been by my side teaching me how to use a bow for the past year. And I was good, unnaturally good. I never missed, not unless I specifically wanted to. It was amazing how accurate I actually was. Mother would give me odd tasks, such as pinning a fly to a wall by its wings while a hundred meters away, blindfolded. Again… I never missed._

 _I had actually began to suspect my training with Mother was over, even before she locked herself away. She had been devoting her time to perfecting the serum she had been giving the children, with me as a success, she had a baseline. But none of the kids she had picked up in the year before she locked herself away accepted the serum. So I was the only one in the house with powers. They weren't as impressive as pyrokinesis, but at least they were effective._

 _I yawned loudly and began to prepare for the day. The room that I had first woken up in all those years ago had turned out to be my room, not Mother's. I dressed myself, slipping on low rank armor. I then tied my messy brown hair up into a bun, just like Mother's. I grabbed my quiver and hung it by my side with a belt, then I strapped my bow to my back. I was ready for the day._

 _I was the only one on the third floor, so it was completely silent as I made my way downstairs and into the huge kitchen. I grabbed a simple banana and prepared to leave the house. I had made a rudimentary shooting range in the backyard where I could at least continue to practice. Although I didn't really need practice, I figured that it would serve me best not to become rusty. I didn't know what I would be using this skill for, but I surmised I would be hunting monsters with it._

 _Why else would Mother be researching these powers? What other use could they have than hunting monsters? I wondered when she would let me go… or if she would let me go at all. Sometimes it seemed like she never wanted me to leave. I was her first and only success, it made sense to not want to let me go._

 _I chewed my breakfast slowly, taking my time. I was in no rush after all, and I knew that it was below freezing outside. It wasn't snowing, thank god, but it had just a few days ago. There was still a thin white sheet on the ground in some places, but it hadn't snowed since._

 _I finished my banana and drained a glass of orange juice I had made myself. I stretched and cracked my neck, preparing myself for the cold. But as I made to exit the kitchen, a figure blocked my path. It was Mother… and she was carrying a baby._

 _My eyebrow arched in confusion, "He's a bit young, don't you think?" I asked, concerned that a mere baby wouldn't be able to withstand the experiments. "When did you find him?"_

 _She chuckled slightly, "You mistake yourself, child. I did not find him… he is mine." My eyes widened in shock, that's why she had been gone, that's why she had seemed so sick… she had been pregnant!_

 _"_ _Yours?" I asked softly, "Who's the father?"_

 _"_ _That's classified, I'm afraid," her tone stiffened as her eyes narrowed. I met her gaze without fear, I had long stopped being afraid of Mother._

 _"_ _You don't plan to use him for experiments, do you?" I asked harshly. I never condoned what she did, but I understood its benefits. After all, I am… extremely thankful that she had taken me in. The past six years had been an immense improvement than living on the streets. But I drew the line at her own child. Why would she sacrifice her own flesh and blood when she could continue doing what she's always been doing?_

 _"_ _The experiments are already through, I'm afraid you're too late to stop them, my child," she said. There was no hint of smugness nor smirk on her face… she was just stating fact._

 _"_ _Already through, huh? May I ask what they were?" I questioned before sighing and shaking my head, "Classified, aren't they?" She nodded stiffly before walking into the kitchen and grabbing a banana for herself._

 _"_ _I just wanted you to know about him," she said softly before walking away, heading back towards her lab. I watched her go… hoping that she was at least telling the truth. At least the training arena is no longer closed off._

 _Static_

 _The scent of saltwater burned my nostrils. I had never been near the ocean before, and now I was standing on a dock, a mere foot above the water. My bow was still strapped to my back and my quiver was ever present by my side, but I was still wary of water leviathans leaping from the sea and attacking, as I heard they often did in this place._

 _The years had flown by; I was sixteen now. Sometimes I barely recognized myself in the mirror, but the same blue eyes always greeted me and my hair was always pulled into a messy bun, just like Mother's. So much had changed, but so little made any difference._

 _I had continued to practice, despite not needing it. No other children had entered the house as Mother was too concerned with her own child to take care of others. There were only two other children in the house, both male, and I couldn't quite recall their names. But they had not been put into the program._

 _And of course, Mother's son… she had just named him Son. Nothing more, nothing less. I never bothered to question it… it wasn't like he could talk for himself. He was turning four today, but he had never said a word. I wondered if Mother had made him mute, or if he just didn't want to talk to me._

 _Mother decided that she wanted to take him to her home. Her former home, apparently, where she was born and raised. She brought me along, as if I was some bodyguard. Maybe that's what she trained me for, guarding her. I think I'd rather be a hunter._

 _She had left me alone as she took her son somewhere in the small village. And the village was extremely small, it almost didn't look like there was a home for everyone. So I stood on the edge of the docks, waiting for Mother to come back. I didn't like this place._

 _Everyone gave me odd looks, as if they_ _knew_ _something about me I didn't. I was so close to snapping when I felt someone tugging at my side. In the instant I felt that tugging, I felt a void by my side, as if a great weight had been lifted. I whirled around, only to find someone running away carrying a quiver full of arrows._ _ **My quiver!**_ _I realized._

 _I ran after the fleeing shape, my superior physique edging the thief out in speed as I eventually caught her. I slammed into her in a full body tackle, pinning her to the ground. I heard muffled chuckling and I realized that the thief was laughing at me. The thief was a small child and she was wearing a mask, light brown hair spilling out behind it. I stood, getting off of her, though she never stopped laughing, and snatched my quiver back. I snapped it onto my belt and glared at her._

 _"_ _Stealing is wrong," I hissed at her, wondering what I should do. Should I drag her back into the village so she could face justice? She seemed to be an orphan, judging by her ratty clothes, was that fair? She was just like me, when I was young, would it be a kinder fate just to end her here? It wasn't like anyone was going to miss her._

 _"_ _Only if you get caught!" the little girl said excitedly. "I never meant to actually take anything… I was just wondering if you could catch me!"_

 _"_ _If you wanted to play tag, you should've asked," I sighed. She didn't get away with it, she clearly had no use for my arrows… it wasn't like they would be worth much without the bow to go with it. I checked my back out of habit to feel my bow still there… she hadn't taken it. I guess I wouldn't do anything, then._

 _"_ _No, no! You would've said no!" the little girl claimed, spinning in a tight circle. "You looked so upset, so I decided to force you to play!" She landed on her back, still laughing loudly._

 _I rolled my eyes. I was not upset. I was just annoyed by being dragged from my perfectly good home to protect Mother… who did not need protecting. "Yeah, sure, whatever you say, kid," I eventually sighed and walked back towards the village._

 _"_ _No, wait!" I felt the tugging again and I whirled around, quicker this time, to make sure she wasn't stealing my things again. She wasn't, she had just tugged on the armored skirt I was wearing. "Come on! Play with me!" she insisted._

 _I seriously considered doing so. I almost wanted to drop my things and spend the rest of the day entertaining the orphan, that way she would at least have one good day to call her own. But I couldn't… I had to find Mother. I shook my head softly, and, although her face was covered by a mask, she looked so distraught, nearly breaking me._

 _I turned to head back to the village when I saw Mother approaching our location. We had not run far from the large gates, so Mother could find us easily. She walked up to me and said, "I didn't see you in the village, so I assumed you were out here."_

 _I nodded in agreement before noticing something was missing. "Where is your son?" I asked carefully._

 _"_ _It's classified," she said smoothly, before walking away. She had come here by way of balloon, and she had set it down not far from the village gates. "Come," she said sternly, clearly not wanting me to question what was going on. Where was her son? Are we leaving him behind? The little thief followed me to Mother's balloon, Mother noticing._

 _"_ _Are you an orphan, child," she asked, bending down so that she was on level with the masked girl. She reached out to remove the mask, but the little girl flinched away from her touch. She didn't want the mask to be removed._

 _"_ _Yes…" she said slowly, not quite comfortable around the adult. Mother nodded to herself and stepped onto the balloon, me behind her._

 _"_ _Then you can come with us," Mother said._

 _Static_

 _He was gone. Definitely gone, and never coming back. It had been two years since our trip to Mother's homeland… but we had never gone back. She abandoned him… how could she? It was an atrocity that I could not condone… and yet I stayed. I had nowhere else to go, how could I leave?_

 _Two more years passed and I was eighteen. Technically, I could leave whenever I wanted. But I had no education… no money… no job. I knew nothing about the world except for what I had read through books and what I had experienced for myself all those years ago as an orphan._

 _I sat at the kitchen table, mindlessly staring off into space. I would've picked up a book, but it was quickly becoming harder and harder to find a book I hadn't read yet. So, I sat, doing absolutely nothing. It had become difficult to stay motivated over the past years._

 _I no longer felt the need to practice my archery, I was already perfect. I was perfect from the beginning, I just needed to adjust to using a bow… but now… I had hardly touched the thing. "Hey, Ruby, are you all right?" I heard a voice beside me._

 _It was one of the two other kids left in the house. Both of them were male, and I could never remember their names. They weren't complex, but I hardly ever interacted with them, thus I was never exposed to their names often enough for me to relate them to their faces. "Yeah, you seem a bit down," a second voice cut in._

 _The second one had come up behind me, I was surrounded… I didn't have anywhere to go. At least they knew my name… more than I could say for them. "I'm fine," I sighed, "just a bit bored, is all." They were a year younger than me, but I was fairly certain they weren't related._

 _"_ _Well, we finished our chores for today. If there's something we can do to help…" the first one trailed off. I snorted, they could do nothing to alleviate this boredom. The other one nodded when I turned to him. That's it… they were bored too._

 _"_ _I'm afraid there's nothing I want to do," I said. I leaned back into my chair, no longer looking at either of them, and stared out into space once more. "I'm just wondering why it is that I stay here."_

 _The two were quiet for a good while, letting me just think, but the first one eventually cut through the silence, saying, "Then leave. If there's nothing keeping you here, then you should just go."_

 _"_ _It's not that simple," I sighed. "I doubt Mother wants to lose her prized pig." Even after all these years, she had never had another success. Although the masked girl showed promise, she had yet to unlock her power. And she had been trying for two years. Mother thought that it was just a similar situation to mine, but I knew that the little girl would likely never achieve what I had managed to._

 _"_ _Fuck Mother, seriously. You're eighteen, right? You can leave whenever you want! That's what we're doing when we turn eighteen next year," the second one said._

 _I chuckled slightly, "You shouldn't curse." I smirked at his angry expression, I sounded just like her when I said that._

 _The first one glared at the second, as if to admonish him, "Cursing aside, if you want to leave… you really should. Mother cannot stand in your way, only you can." Is that true? If I was truly the only one who could stand in my way, then I could do whatever I wanted, right?_

 _I sighed and stood from my seat, turning to walk away from the two. "Hey, where are you going?" the second one asked, confused as to why I was just leaving. But that was exactly what I intended to do… just leave._

 _I stopped, but didn't turn around, "I'm leaving, like you said. I think I'm going to go and become a hunter." And with that proclamation, I went up to my room and grabbed my bow and quiver… then I left. I never said another word to Mother, nor did I even say goodbye._

XXX

"You've gotta be kidding me," Malakai said. His hand met his face as he shook his head. Dr. Steele had a similar reaction, though hers was silent. Nova, on the other hand, was entirely confused.

 _"_ _Vhy?"_ she asked, not seeing the reason. Why should she risk her life and her followers on some war with the guild? There was a reason Shagaru had never challenged the guild before, it was because he valued the lives of his followers as well as his own. The guild was just too strong.

The apex state faded once more as Zim sighed, "Surely you all can see why it's beneficial for us to destroy the guild. Nova, what about Shagaru? He was _killed_ because of guild hunters! Malakai, what about the Knights? What if they are discovered by the guild? Do you really think they'll let you continue?"

Nova and Malakai snarled, "That's why we stay hidden, Zim. We only serve to protect what remains of our faith." He glanced at Nova.

 _"_ _You know vat? Destroy ze guild! Vith all ze excitement recently, I had forgotten about mein Kumpel… zey must pay. Zey must all pay!"_ Nova roared, frenzy swirling around her. Malakai stared at her anger, remembering how right she was.

"You cannot stay hidden forever, Malakai," Zim urged.

Malakai responded by placing his hand over his eyes as he began to think hard. "I know you're right… but that doesn't mean we should outright attack them!"

Nova cut in before Zim could say anything, _"Nein, look at us. Ve are all in serious danger! Und now ve haff drawn innocent Ruby into zis… ve haff to strike before zey do."_ Zim nodded in agreement.

Fuun, who had been quiet up until this point, decided to put in her own two cents, _"The guild took from me my aniki. This is the only way I can have my revenge, ningen, and if Zim says we need your help… then you are going to help us."_

Malakai let out a deep sigh, "I guess I see your points," he paused to glare at Fuun, "But it's not just as simple as _let's go smash the guild!_ "

Zim smirked, "Isn't it? It's not like we aren't going to replace it with something… we are. The guild has become too dangerous for us to move freely, and with me like this… I cannot just stand idly by as the guild commits atrocity after atrocity. I won't abandon my birth species, but I will do it something better. For, from the ashes of the guild, I will replace it with something better."

Malakai waved his hands in the air, "That's nice, Zim. Let's assume that we _can_ even destroy the guild, because, believe me, even with the Knight's help… that will be no easy feat. Let's say we manage to get into the city, in order to bring the guild crumbling down we have to, at the very least because we haven't factored in the losses from both sides trying to stop this, kill the guildmaster, the Chancellor, the Great Elder, and every other G-Rank hunter."

He paused for a second before saying slowly, "I nearly forgot, what about the number one hunter in the world? He… or she, definitely won't be on our side. You haven't heard the tales like I have, Zim. They say the number one hunter in the world can come out unscathed after fighting a Fatalis, and Akantor, a Teostra, and even an Alatreon all at once! He's more than a God, he…"

"Doesn't exist," Zim cut Malakai's rant off. Malakai's eyes widened in surprise. "What you are afraid of is a myth, Malakai. I saw it with my own eyes, the number one hunter in the world is a sword. A sword that can negate a monster's high speed regeneration. And whoever wields it becomes the _number one hunter in the world_ ," Zim finished sarcastically.

"What?" Malakai said softly, not quite believing what he was hearing. So many stories had surfaced about the number one hunter in the world… he figured a few of them to be false, but didn't expect the hunter himself to not even exist. "That still presents problems for us, Zim," he eventually sighed.

Dr. Steele stepped forward, putting a hand on Malakai's shoulder, "Hold up, do you mean the God Slaying sword?"

Zim and Fuun exchanged looks before he turned back to Dr. Steele, "Yeah, do you know the sword?"

"Know the sword? I was one of the researchers tasked with _making_ the sword. If that's what we're all worried about here, I have a way that can counter its effects," Gloria grinned, but then looked unsure of herself. "Probably," she added.

Malakai turned slightly to look at Dr. Steele, "You agree with him?" he asked, feeling a bit betrayed.

Gloria sighed, "Look… I don't want to admit it, but he makes an excellent point. I don't care, one way or the other, if the guild is destroyed, just as long as it doesn't interfere with my research and my Wycademy."

"That's just great. Am I really alone here?" Malakai muttered to himself. He thought for another moment before saying, "Man… fine. Fine. You have the Knight's support, but I still don't think it's enough. I still think that we won't be able to take Dundorma, number one hunter or not."

"Don't assume that this is all I'm bringing to the table. While you ready your troops, I will be readying mine," Zim growled. One of Malakai's eyebrows rose in a suspicious glance, prompting Zim to continue, "We'll have enough soldiers, trust me. By the way, where is Ruby? I would think she would be the most vocal one out of the three of you."

Malakai and Dr. Steele shared a glance, wondering if they should tell him the truth. That he nearly killed Ruby, and she was still in a coma as they spoke. But they never had the chance to say anything, as Ruby's voice pierced the silence, "Ask me about what?"

XXX

 **Yeah, yeah, I know. This is long… I mean like, extremely long. I hope that you all didn't have too much trouble reading it, though I do wonder if any of you were able to read it all in one sitting. Normally, I try and keep my chapters concise and keep backstory like this to a minimum, but it occurred to me that I had a wonderful way to instill foreshadowing! So… Zim's part is pretty standard, he stops a fight, he convinces the others to go to war with him, Ruby's part is what's interesting. And I'd like to take a moment to talk about it.**

 **Now, there are a lot of interesting facts that you can dig up using Ruby's memories. The most obvious is this Mother character, it should be very clear that she'll be making an appearance soon. What isn't so obvious is the other characters I've sprinkled in. So, like a good guide, I'll draw your attention to the four characters whose backstory intertwines with Mother, and Ruby as well. Now, one key thing I would like to remind you of, that I don't think I actually said in the story, Ruby is twenty-eight years old… one of the youngest to ever make G-Rank, ever. Besides Zim, of course.**

 **Now, the first person that is important in Ruby's memories is Mother's son. Hopefully, it's not too difficult to decipher all the clues I left behind. But, what makes it more interesting, is the event leading up to Mother's son's introduction, the women entering Mother's lab and never leaving. What could Mother have been doing to these women? I will tell you that it is technically plot relevant.**

 **The second two important characters in Ruby's memories are the two boys at the end of the sequence. They never give their names, but hopefully it isn't too far-fetched to consider who they may be. I'm not going to say; I'm going to let you all guess.**

 **The last important character is the masked girl. Now, this one is tough and I don't expect anyone to get it. But, what I will say, is that you have been introduced to her before. And she will become important later in the story…**

 **Now, with ALL that being said, I should say… this is, without a doubt, the longest chapter I've ever written. To put that in perspective, my longest chapter in this story, excluding this one, is only 7k words… my longest chapter in Tedium is only 8k words… this one is well over 11k. I had considered cutting this chapter in half, but I decided against it. Anyways, stay tuned until next time to see how Ruby reacts to Zim's new goal!**


	16. Chapter 16

Chapter 16 - Fremdschaemen:

Author's Note:

 **I'm impressed. One of you managed to get the dream exactly right… I mean completely correct. I gave you Ruby's age on purpose, and the reviewer managed to use her age to decipher the other four characters. Very good job, Dragon-God.**

 **As many of you might already know, I enjoy listening to music as I type (and I highly recommend listening to something as you work, it increases productivity by an alarming rate… at least for myself). Although I prefer classical, sometimes something a bit harder is nice. Usually, I would turn to Rammstein for something a bit harder than classical… but I've discovered something that might fit this story a bit better. If you enjoy Monster Hunter themes, but think they aren't heavy enough… well, YouTube has you covered. Just search your favorite MH theme with "Intense Symphonic Music Cover" and you should find it. And yes, there is even the Khezu theme.**

 **Right so, where were we? Oh yeah, Ruby just woke up. So… what will her reaction to Zim's plan be? And, of course, what is this other army Zim speaks of? Please, enjoy!**

XXX

 _Fremdschaemen: The feeling of being ashamed on someone else's behalf._

They turned as one to see Ruby slowly getting to her feet. Nova let out an audible sigh of relief, she was fine. Ruby stared at her arm for a moment, admiring the tattoo-like mark, before clenching her fist tightly. She let out a deep breath and closed her now light pink eyes. The frenzy had changed her.

 _"_ _Did it vork?"_ Nova asked. Malakai and Dr. Steele held their breaths, but Zim could tell. He knew that it had worked. Among her physical changes, her scent changed as well. She no longer smelled just like a human, she had become something tainted. By the frenzy.

"You bet your golden ass it did," Ruby chuckled as she began to redress herself. Energy surged through her body, she had become stronger, faster, perhaps even more so than Malakai and Dr. Steele.

"I think you gave her too big of a dose," Malakai said, turning back to Nova. He noticed the color of Ruby's eyes, they were too light to have the proper dosage. Although the frenzy turned his gaze permanently red, his eyes were not quite as pink as hers…

Nova only snorted, _"I gave her ze same dosage zat I gave you."_ Malakai nodded suspiciously, those pink eyes still didn't settle with him. If Nova did indeed give her too much of the frenzy… she could be unstable, or even dangerous.

"Now, what were you saying?" Ruby asked, turning to Zim, grin firmly in place as she clasped the last of her armor on. She left her greaves off, however, letting her mark hang free. Her pink eyes suddenly became clouded with confusion when she noticed the Fatalis. "Any reason why Fuun is here?"

"Fuun?" Malakai echoed, turning to look at Zim.

"I might've forgotten to mention her name…" Zim trailed off. Ruby walked closer to Zim and Fuun, afraid of neither of them. Perhaps she could no longer feel fear, or perhaps her situation was so absurd that she had evolved beyond the need to feel fear. In either case, she stood tall next to Zim, noting that he was now just as tall as she was.

Zim turned to her, "I have decided, upon lengthy consideration and deliberation with Fuun and the others, that our best course of action is to destroy the hunter's guild. And replace it with something better." Malakai snorted at that thought, but no one made any attempt to notice.

Ruby thought for a moment, "Well, yeah… I guess I'm on board."

Zim and Malakai shared a look before they said as one, "Really?" If anything, Ruby had the least reason to want to fight the guild. Though neither knew anything about her, they doubted that it had to do with her becoming a Knight.

Ruby raised an eyebrow before saying, "Look, the guild took me in when I left… h-h-ome..." she stuttered out, but shook it off before continuing, "And I gained rank rapidly because I was good. But after spending time with you… I so desperately want to believe what you've been saying. I _want_ to see things through your eyes, through _their_ ," she gestured towards Fuun and Nova, "perspectives. So, I agreed to get the mark. I could've said no, Malakai and Nova weren't going to stop me from saying no. But I risked my life because I want to _believe_ , Zim."

She embraced the apex hunter, she truly cared. She truly changed. She ignored Fuun's audible growling as she stepped away from Zim, who only smirked at her. "Glad to have you with us. I wanted you to have the mark because I _wanted_ you to _see_. And now you do… tell me, then, what do you see?" Zim asked.

Ruby trained her pink eyes on Fuun, saying, "I see suffering. Death where none is necessary. But I see opportunity… a chance to stop all this. A chance to finally change our future. The past is the past, but the present marches ever forward… you were right. _You have to be right._ "

Zim's smirk widened as he let out a light chuckle, "Well said. Then are we all in agreement? Because come this time tomorrow… it is war."

 _"_ _If mein Knight sinks it ist best… zhen I vill be vith you, evermore,"_ Nova growled, the first to chime in. She pawed the ground before letting the frenzy gather around her as she released an almighty roar.

"As long as the Wycademy still stands, I couldn't care either way," Dr. Steele shrugged.

"I guess I don't have much of a choice, do I?" Malakai scratched the back of his head. "But my troops… the Knights are at your command."

"And you already know what I think, Zim," Ruby grinned. "To war!"

 _"_ _And I shall forever be by your side, engumi suru,"_ Fuun hissed before joining Nova in a roar of conquest. Their roars echoed throughout the Sanctuary and through Heaven's Mount. The monsters that called the mountain their home soon knew that two of the most dangerous creatures on the planet had just declared war on the humans. They threw their own heads back and echoed that roar or triumph, for they knew not what else they could do.

"I guess we'll go back to Bherna to prepare," Malakai said. Dr. Steele nodded in agreement, knowing that they were still needed to protect the village and the Wycademy. They couldn't afford to dally.

"Yes. Take Ruby with you and prepare to your heart's content. I shall gather my forces and wait for you on the ledge of the great hill, overlooking Dundorma. And… in three days' time," Zim paused, "We shall lay siege to the heart of the guild."

XXX

Malakai, Ruby, and Dr. Steele were surrounded by the remains of the Knights of the Wolf. Just over five dozen soldiers remained. Malakai rubbed his temples as a headache slowly set in. Whatever Zim had planned, he hoped the Knights didn't play too big of a role.

Malakai had already run through the entire story, who Zim was, why he was giving orders, and what they were going to have to do. "And I know many of you are hunters. I have no idea what his plan is after Dundorma falls…"

"If it falls," one of the Knights growled. Everyone turned to look at him. Noticing that he had everyone's attention, he continued, "Dundorma is heavily fortified and, even if we had a thousand Knights, I doubt we'll be able to take the city. Even if this Zim is as strong as you say, we need at least a thousand more before we can even dent the doors."

Malakai sighed, "No… no… I'm afraid that you're wrong. First, Zim is strong enough to take the city himself, army or not. Our only job is to get him inside; he'll do the rest. Second… he apparently has an army of his own."

The Knight's eyes widened, before narrowing, "What kind of army?" Malakai turned to look back at Dr. Steele, who only nodded, prompting him to answer the question truthfully.

"I'm not exactly sure… but I have a feeling that it isn't a human army," he answered. Gasps ran throughout the crowd. A few whispers of, _Is Nova going to fight_ , rang out, but Malakai ignored those. He highly doubted that Nova was going to leave the Sanctuary, and he doubted there was anything Zim could do to change her mind.

The same Knight snorted, "You expect us to fight alongside monsters?" He crossed his arms protectively as others echoed the concern. Malakai rolled his eyes, he didn't think this would be so difficult.

"You'll fight alongside monsters and you'll fucking like it," Ruby growled next to Malakai.

The Knight glared at her, pointed, and said, "Who's the broad?" He snickered at a look of fury presented itself on Ruby's face. _She definitely got too high of a dose,_ Malakai noted. But he opened his mouth to defend her, however, but she beat him to the punch.

"How about you come over here to say that to my face?" she hissed, pink eyes narrowing dangerously. The hunter's grin widened as he stepped forward, intent on doing exactly as she asked. Malakai rolled his eyes and stepped in front of Ruby, breaking their line of sight from each other.

"That would be unwise," Malakai noted, trying to end the conflict peacefully. The last thing they needed was strife before the battle.

The Knight snorted, "She doesn't look so tough." He cracked his knuckles, intent on shoving the smaller Malakai out of the way.

Malakai, noticing the aggressive body language, narrowed his eyes, and growled, "Do you forget who your commanding officer is? My orders are absolute. Stand down." The Knight growled and took a step back, there was a reason Malakai was in charge. He was G-Rank, and a very strong one at that.

"Now, then, Dr. Steele, if you would?" Malakai said. He moved out of Ruby's way, who was still growling audibly at the cocky Knight.

Dr. Steele stepped forward and said, "With an army of this size, moving by ground would take too long and we would be too noticeable. However, it would be too expensive and nearly impossible to transport all of us by balloon… which is why I have an alternate solution."

A young girl garbed in academy robes stepped through the crowd carrying a large stand. She set it down next to Dr. Steele who tore back the top sheet on the stand, revealing a blue sheet of paper detailing designs for a massive airship. "I have been designing this beauty for a few years, and after the designs and mathematics were worked out… we began to build it. Unfortunately, the project was cancelled a few months ago. The airship is unfinished."

Muttering ran through the crowd, confused as to how an unfinished prototype would be able to help them. "As of this moment, the project is reopened! I will be dividing you all into groups of five to accomplish specific tasks. If we work throughout the rest of today and throughout tomorrow, the warship will be ready!"

The room burst into applause as Dr. Steele smirked. "Unfortunately, I will not be rushing into battle with the rest of you," she continued as the noise died down. The crowd nodded solemnly, knowing that she had to be here for the academy.

"Yes, Dr. Steele will be staying behind. Which means I'll be needing a temporary lieutenant for this operation," Malakai said. Muttering broke out once more, whispering about who he was going to choose. "Which is why Ruby is present today, she will be our temporary lieutenant."

Outrage quickly replaced the quiet murmuring as the Knight from before stepped forward once again. "She's not even a Knight," he complained.

Before Malakai could counter, Ruby raised her left hand, mark bare for all to see. "I am a Knight! Or would you prefer I jam it down your throat?" she hissed.

The Knight smirked, not at all put off by her threat, "No, but I know something that I'd like to jam down your throat." Ruby recoiled in disgust, before glaring at the Knight, clearly preparing to leap at him and tear him to shreds.

Once again, Malakai stepped in front of her. "Enough," he said. "She was just made a Knight, yes, but she was highly recommended by Zim-"

"So she's this Zim's bitch, huh?" the Knight growled.

Malakai finally let out a sigh, he was done with this, "No… she's a G-Rank hunter. Number six in the world. And I've grown tired of your insubordination." The Knight's eyes widened in fear when he realized what had just happened. And who he had been making comments about.

Malakai moved fast, faster than the Knight could perceive as he only felt a sudden jolt pass through his heart before he collapsed. Malakai had stabbed him in the chest. Even a single scratch from Malakai's high powered dual blades would've sent enough electricity through the Knight's body to kill ten men. Humans weren't supposed to be struck by weapons meant for monsters. "Insubordination will not be tolerated… not when we're so close to the edge," Malakai hissed.

He removed his weapon from the dead body and sheathed it on his back. "I, like many of you, was hesitant to accept this as an inevitability. I wanted nothing more than to peacefully coexist with the guild, but the fact remains… the guild has made monster worship illegal, and would destroy us if they found us. And I realize that we cannot hide forever," he explained.

He paused, taking a slow breath, before continuing, "So do we surrender?" he let the question hang in the air. "No…but Nova is all that remains of our God, Shagaru. We have to protect her with everything we've got. And I think that hitting them before they hit us is the best way to eliminate this threat!"

He watched as the group nodded slowly in understanding. "And I, like many of you, am wary of what Zim will do to the guild after this is all done… but you haven't seen what he can do. He is a God amongst men! A living monster, but I believe…" Malakai trailed off before steeling himself and saying, "He is Shagaru's legacy. He was able to contract the frenzy when _none_ of us could, and he was able to overcome it, going _apex!_ Nova favors him, and agrees that war is the only option. Are we just going to stand idly by as our Goddess declares war?"

A chorus of, "No!" rang out among the crowd. He got their attention. If there was one thing the Knights had in common, it was love for their God Shagaru. And if Nova was all that was left, they would follow her just as Shagaru would've wanted.

"Of course not! So, we'll stand beside Zim in three days, and we'll charge with him into Dundorma, and we'll take the city! We'll cripple the hunters' guild and take over. Zim will lead us to victory…" Malakai trailed off before finishing strong, "And if conditions afterwards aren't up to our standard… he can't stand against all of us." Cheers echoed those words as the hunters split into groups of five and prepared to receive their tasks.

"Isa, start handing out the tasks to the groups," Dr. Steele commanded as she walked over to Malakai. The girl in academy robes saluted and began to hand out pieces of paper to all of the groups. "Showoff," Gloria smirked, nudging Malakai.

He smirked, "I couldn't let you upstage me." Ruby watched as the two chuckled. "The warship will be ready in time, right?"

"Of course. My calculations are flawless, as you know," Dr. Steele grinned. She handed him a slip of paper identical to the ones Isa was handing out before walking away. "Ruby, please come with me."

Malakai grinned, "You have a task for me too?" he said, but she was too far out of range. He snorted and opened the sheet of paper. His eyes widened as he read it. He let the slip of paper fall to the ground before calling out, "Oh come on! This is your job!" He really didn't want to have to do this… he had preparations of his own to make.

Gloria smirked when he heard his voice, but did not stop. Ruby gave her a questioning glance, but Dr. Steele only shook it off as unimportant. She also had more important things to do, but Malakai would get the job done. _I need you to oversee the entire process._

XXX

Another loud roar echoed around the world. As the sound faded, Zim let out a growl. It was taking too long. _"Calm down, they'll be here,"_ Fuun said. Zim sighed deeply, but the apex state did not fade from his features.

 **"** **I know… I've been calling for hours. What if they don't come?"** Zim said. He was pacing, frenzy swelling around him. Fuun and Nova had both settled on opposite sides of the Sanctuary, still not wanting to be near each other. Zim paced between the two of them, at the moment closest to Fuun.

 _"_ _They'll come. You slew Kami, they must come. If not… then we will find them and drag them here ourselves. We'll wait a few more hours,"_ Fuun said with a soft hiss. She was still upset over the loss of her aniki, but she got something better in return. And… Zim would finally do what Kami always wanted. Taking down Dundorma.

 **"** **Very well. We will wait for an hour… if they aren't here by then, we shall go to them,"** Zim hissed and continued his pacing towards Nova. She greeted him with a grunt, it didn't take long for him to walk from her to Fuun.

 _"_ _You should calm down, it vill get us novhere if you're agitated,"_ she said. Zim only sent a glance her way before pacing back towards Fuun. _"You know zat I'm not going vith you, right?"_ she said just as he was walking away.

 **"** **I figured, but I hoped otherwise,"** Zim turned around to face Nova.

 _"_ _I haff to stay in zis place. It is mein prison, und mein home. If you vin, zhen I can perhaps leave for ze first time in years… but if you lose, I can remain here,"_ she explained.

 **"** **So you stay for selfish reasons, huh? Nothing is more important than your life, is it?"** Zim hissed. Under normal circumstances, he would never question his goddess, but he was swiftly losing his temper waiting for his army… and the apex state was only driving him further towards the brink.

 _"_ _Zim, you're taking all mein soldiers… leading zem to zeir deaths… I vould like to be zere, truly I vould, but I cannot allow myself to die. If I die, my species dies,"_ she admitted.

 **"** **What about Specter… Finsternis? Where is he?"** Zim asked. He knew that her species was at risk, but had thought that the little Magala he had saved would save her as well.

 _"_ _You misunderstand, ze species is safe so long as a male can undergo ze molting, und Finsternis is a good candidate… but if I die, females haff a much lower molt rate… ve could be through,"_ she explained.

 **"** **Where is Finsternis?"** Zim repeated his last question. He had learned about the molting process from Malakai, but he never mentioned that females molted at a lower rate than males. And since Nova had lost her mate, no more Magala were being born.

 _"_ _I haff sent him avay. If he is to be a strong mate, he must survive until adulthood and learn ze hardships of ze vorld. Only zhen vill he be strong enough to make ze transition,"_ she explained.

Zim gulped and curled his hands into fists. He stared into Nova's eyes, blood-red meeting gold, **"I promise, if there is any way to reverse what Kami has done… I'll do it."**

Nova nodded solemnly, _"I know you vill."_ That promise alone meant more to her than destroying the guild. She would rather he stays with her, her eternal guardian, and let the others attack Dundorma alone. But… she knew that the only reason the operation ever could succeed was because Zim would be leading the attack.

 **"** **I'm going to fix all of this,"** he gestured with his arms, **"Everything. The mistakes humanity made, the mistakes Kami made, I'm going to pave the way for a brighter tomorrow."**

Nova nodded, her lips pulling upwards in a smile. But that smile dropped from her face as a shiver passed through her body. Fuun must've felt it too, as she stood up on her hind legs, anticipating danger. _"Do you feel zat?"_ Nova asked as she righted herself. Frenzy gathered around her, trying to cloak her from the sudden temperature shift.

 **"** **No,"** Zim answered, oblivious to what just happened. The apex state protected him from any shift in temperature and completely negated elemental and status effects. He was more durable than even Fuun. However, the sound of wings beating reached Zim's ears. **"But I hear that…"**

Nova and Fuun looked up, growls lost on their lips as the heavy cloud of frenzy that covered the Sanctuary burst open, letting sunlight into the arena. The two monsters squinted from the sudden change in light, but Zim could only smirk as a huge black dragon descended into the Sanctuary.

One of the beast's wings was coated in a sheet of ice as electricity bounded around the area between its two massive horns. The monster landed heavily, a deep thud echoing throughout the small arena. It reared back and let out a loud roar, red and black lighting springing up around it as fire flickered in its mouth. The ice melted from the one wing, revealing that the beast had lost its wing membrane.

Zim's smirk only widened as another dragon began its descent into the arena, this one a bright red instead of the insidious black of the previous dragon. A fiery mane flowed from the base of the monster's neck, two large horns sprung from the top of the monster's head, and four fangs sprouted from its cat-like jaws. The monster landed and let out a roar as fire surrounded him.

A third dragon came next, this one a bright, metallic silver. This dragon's skin looked as tough as steel, how it was light enough to fly was a mystery to Zim. The winds became heavy, as they blasted throughout the arena. They would've been strong enough to knock a normal human off their feet, but Zim remained strong in the face of the tempest. Blue eyes locked onto Zim as the monster landed and released a loud roar of its own.

 **"** **Help… has finally arrived,"** Zim grinned before he too lifted his head and let out as loud a roar as he possibly could, doing his best to surpass the other three in volume. Then the frenzy eclipsed the sun once more.

XXX

Dr. Steele led Ruby into her office, shutting the door behind her as she did. She offered the G-Rank hunter a seat, which Ruby accepted, and she walked over to a fridge against one of the walls. Ruby fidgeted in her seat, unable to remain still. She had seen Malakai kill a man… _she wanted to kill him first._

Gloria began mumbling to herself as she picked out a few needles and squinted at the small writing on the glass. She sighed and placed all but one of them back into the fridge. She walked back over to Ruby, who had been observing her go through the fridge intently.

Ruby's eyes widened as the blue liquid sloshed inside the needle. She tensed as Dr. Steele grabbed her arm and prepared to inject the liquid into her. She reacted instinctively, slapping the doctor's hand away, sending the needle crashing to the ground, scattering the blue liquid across the floor.

Ruby stood in a single fluid motion, grabbed Dr. Steele by her collar, and lifted her a foot off the ground. Ruby growled deeply, pink eyes blazing as she glared at Gloria. Gloria remained unamused, however, her face placid and her nerves like steel. _"Not again… never again,"_ Ruby snarled.

Dr. Steele's eyes narrowed when she recognized the signs of a cornered animal. She snorted and said, "The frenzy is reacting negatively to your system. The shot is supposed to help you contain it. Put me down."

Ruby hesitated, but eventually put Dr. Steele down and backed away from her. Realization flooded her, she had attacked an ally. The frenzy had awoken repressed memories from her childhood, the experiments, the needles, the liquid… had all come crashing back into her. She stood stock still, twitching only slightly, as Dr. Steele dug into her fridge once more.

"Hold out your arm," Gloria commanded. Ruby was hesitant, but eventually held out her arm per Gloria's request. Dr. Steele gripped her arm and, without breaking eye contact, slipped the needle into her skin and injected the contents into her body.

Ruby's reaction was immediate. She dropped to the ground, exhaling as if she had been punched in the stomach. All the excess energy in her system was expelled rapidly, leaving her feeling drained. She looked up at Dr. Steele, who disposed of the needle properly, silently asking for an explanation.

"The mark is created by introducing the frenzy virus into your system, Nova had given you too big a dose, or you are reacting poorly to the virus. Either way, the frenzy virus can be contained using nulberries, the shot introduced the berry into your system and it immediately began to fight the virus. It'll lose, of course, but it will hopefully get you accustomed to the virus. If not… we can always give you another shot," Dr. Steele shrugged.

She took a seat at her desk. Ruby struggled to her feet and retook the seat across from Dr. Steele. She folded her hands on her desk and said, "You saw the God Slaying sword, yes?"

Ruby shook herself, struggling to stay awake. The nulberries had taken all her energy and now she was exhausted. But she answered anyways, "Yes. Zim used it to slay a White Fatalis name Kami."

"And it works?" Dr. Steele asked.

"You didn't test it on a real monster?" Ruby countered.

"I was a part of the research team that designed and constructed the blade, but I was not the one to test it."

"It works. It was… horrifying, to say the least. A beast of Kami's magnitude being brought down by a single strike… it changes the playing field," Ruby mumbled.

Dr. Steele chuckled slightly, "You sound just like our team leader. She was so intent on figuring out the secret to the sword… she focused on nothing else. She was so young, yet worked so hard. I bet that's why her hair turned white, all the stress is bad, you know?"

Ruby froze before swallowing hard, "Right…" she trailed off. _It couldn't be,_ she thought to herself. "I do wonder, however, why the guild would be in possession of such a powerful weapon and not only _not_ use it… but tell no one they have it. Just invent a false title and have the sword wear the crown. One would think the sword would solve all the guild's problems."

Dr. Steele shrugged, "Who knows. I would think it would be in the guild's best interest to use the sword to take the world… but they haven't." She breathed out and raised a hand to her chin, stroking it softly. "It doesn't make any sense. If the sword could kill even a White Fatalis, why wouldn't the guild use it?"

Ruby shook her head, now that the frenzy was mostly gone, she was thinking clearly again, "Perhaps they had to wait." Dr. Steele looked up with confusion written on her face. "No, think about it. If we assume Kami is the most powerful monster on the planet, or at the very least the most intelligent, then the guild _had_ to kill him first."

Gloria's eyes widened as she understood what Ruby was saying, "They've had the sword for _years_. What if they were waiting for the White Fatalis to show himself? If they were using the sword before then, the Fatalis would've been able to figure out how to fight against it. Now that Kami is dead… nothing is stopping them from using the sword again."

"Except for whoever takes Kami's place… Zim," Ruby said, realizing what Zim was doing now. It wasn't just revenge, or to prevent further atrocities, it _had_ to be done. Zim had taken Kami's place as the one thing standing in the human's path of world domination.

"But we're still missing something," Ruby mumbled, just loud enough for Dr. Steele to hear. "The report said that Fuun was coming to Castle Schrade, not Kami. Why did they give Zim the sword if they didn't think Kami was showing up?"

Dr. Steele shook her head, "I don't know. This seems to be just one mystery after another. I doubt we'd be able to figure out the answers unless we could speak to the guildmaster himself. But no one seems to know where he is…"

The two sat in silence for a few minutes, both wrapping their minds around what had been spoken between the two. As the silence marched on, the door to the headmistress' office opened and shut. The girl that had helped Dr. Steele had walked in.

Gloria sighed, "Isa, what is it?"

The girl straightened her stance and squared her shoulders, trying to look as confident as possible. But she still twitched when Ruby turned in her seat to stare at her. "Will I be participating in the attack, ma'am?" she asked smoothly, clearly rehearsed a thousand times before hand.

Gloria raised an eyebrow, "Are you a Knight?" she asked evenly.

Isa broke her stance immediately, "W-w-well… n-no?" It was phrased as a question rather than an answer.

Gloria shook her head, "Then you aren't participating in the attack."

She sounded so final, but Isa tried to protest anyways, "But y-you s-s-said that I-"

She was cut off, however, "Are well on your way to becoming a Knight, yes, but you aren't one yet, are you? You just graduated the academy and just accepted into our little… club, and you already show remarkable talent. Let's not throw that away by rushing to our deaths, shall we? Don't worry, I'll be staying behind with you."

Isa bowed her head, ashamed for asking such a foolish question, before backing out of the room. Gloria sent her a small smile, before shaking her head and sighing after the girl had left. "She's brilliant… just… sometimes you can't tell what she's thinking. She comes off as completely unconfident, but then acts like she's willing to throw herself into the fray. I'm hoping that, when ready, the mark will change her for the better," Gloria explained as Ruby turned back around.

"Youth," Ruby smirked, one that Dr. Steele copied. "But my main concern is still this God Slaying sword. It'll be likely to harm even Zim… you said you had a way to deal with it?" Ruby asked.

Dr. Steele nodded, "I said I _might_ have a way to deal with it. Unfortunately, I can't seem to get the damn thing to work. I think that it needs a sufficient amount of frenzy to use, but I just don't have that in me. Which is where you come in. I think that you'll be able to use it just fine…" The duo stood and Dr. Steele led them out of her office and down into the library.

XXX

The three dragons turned their glares towards Zim, two sets of blue and one set of orange stared into Zim's deep red. The apex state still swirled around Zim as the monsters stepped closer to him. He stood still and allowed them to catch his scent.

The black dragon spoke first, _"We felt the death of Kami over the world, was it you who slew him?"_ Although the dragon's voice was a harsh growl, Zim could tell it was a female.

 **"** **Yes,"** Zim answered simply. An Alatreon, a Kushala Daora, and a Teostra… their power plus Fuun's and his own would be more than enough to take Dundorma. And with Malakai's army, they would have enough man power to keep the city under his control.

 _"_ _A human slew Kami? He was stronger than any of us…"_ the red dragon growled in disbelief.

 **"** **I am not human,"** Zim snarled in return. **"Not anymore, at least."** The red dragon narrowed his eyes at him, but the black dragon only chuckled. The silver dragon remained completely quiet, only judging Zim with steel blue eyes.

 _"_ _Really? Then you wouldn't mind a test of strength, would you?"_ the Alatreon hissed, fire blazing in her mouth. The Teostra quickly agreed with the blazing black dragon, fire hissing in his own mouth. The Daora was silent, but Zim could feel the winds increasing speed.

Zim nodded slowly, knowing that the only way they would be willing to listen to him is if he was stronger than them. Kami had likely gone through the same process when subjugating them, so Zim would deign himself to their test. He could see Fuun out of the corner of his eye preparing to interfere if things got too hot.

Before anyone could even blink, fire was spat from the Alatreon's maw, a massive fireball screaming towards Zim. The Teostra responded similarly, though his was a seamless jet of flame, much like Fuun's. The Daora only forced the winds to turn as if in a turbine, swirling the fire into a column of twisting flame, with Zim in the center of the tornado of death.

Zim stood in the center, breathing in the superheated air. Flames licked at his skin, but they did not burn him. The moment the three dragons stopped their attack, Zim moved. He cast the wall of flame aside with a dismissive wave of his hands before slamming his fist into the Teostra.

A loud crack was heard at Zim struck the dragon, knocking him onto his side from the sheer force of the blow. He heard the Alatreon roar and turned to see her scales turning a dark gray, before lightning erupted from her maw. Zim took the blow head-on, fighting his way through the minor annoyance.

Once he reached the Alatreon's head, he gripped her horns and shoved her face into the dirt. The lightning cut off as her jaws were forced closed against the hard ground of the Sanctuary. Her scales turned black once more as she tried to struggle free, but Zim's grip was absolute.

The Daora rushed Zim, slapping him aside, freeing the Alatreon. She righted herself, scales turning the dark gray again, and helped the Daora push Zim against the rock. They both attacked with frost breath, trying to freeze Zim solid. They halted their attack when Zim was encased in a sheet of ice. They breathed heavily, believing them to have won.

Zim easily shook the ice off his body, however. He glared at the duo before lashing out at them, grabbing them by their necks. They squirmed and struggled, but Zim forced them to remain on the ground, and did not let go no matter how hard they scratched at his skin. The Daora's jaws creaked as Zim increased pressure on her neck.

The Teostra managed to right himself at that moment, _"Enough… human. You have proven yourself."_ Zim grinned as he dropped the two monsters to the ground in a mock bow. He walked back over to Fuun as the dragons of black and silver stood. The three dragons shared a look.

 **"** **You cannot harm me,"** Zim growled. They nodded in agreement, they had never felt so helpless before. Even Kami showed signs of damage before the wounds healed faster than the three dragons could comprehend, but Zim remained unharmed, even in their inferno.

The Daora was the first to bow her head, _"Considering your strength, we recognize you as Kami's slayer, and successor. And we pledge service to you in your time of need."_ The other two were more hesitant to agree to that statement, clearly not wanting to be in the service of a human, but eventually bowed their heads and echoed the Daora's words.

 _"_ _I am lady of the mountain, Frost,"_ the Daora introduced herself to Zim. She raised her head, no longer seeing it necessary to bow to Zim.

 _"_ _I am king of the desert, Agni,"_ the Teostra said, realizing what Frost was doing. He too rose from his bow.

 **"** **I know you,"** Zim said before the Alatreon had time to speak. She cocked her head at him, confused as to how she was already known. **"You're on the guild's most wanted list. The One-Winged Angel."**

 _"_ _I was not aware I was wanted by the guild,"_ she said, _"Though I do suppose I've killed quite a few foolish hunters…"_ she trailed off, clearly remembering her conquest of the poorly prepared hunting parties. _"Care to tell how the guild knows of my… condition? I had thought I left no one alive."_

Zim chuckled, **"That might actually be my fault. Before you became widely known as the terror of the Sacred Lands, there was another Alatreon there. I killed that one and the men sent to collect the body must've seen you arriving."**

She snarled and growled, _"So that's why I was attacked so soon after landing. I should thank you, though. You got rid of a real nuisance for me. I am queen of the volcano, I suppose I like the ring of the One-Winged Angel, you may address me as Angel."_ She finally introduced herself. _"You have summoned us here for more than just subjugating us, I assume?"_

 **"** **Of course,"** Zim said, **"I want you to help me in destroying Dundorma."** The three dragons shared another look before a feral grin tugged at the corners of Angel's maw. She walked over to Zim, lowering her head so that it was on level with the human monster.

 _"_ _Taking Dundorma is ambitious, I like that, Demi,"_ she grinned, fangs bared at Zim. He did not flinch from her words. Fuun, on the other hand, stalked over to Zim, and stood behind him with her head just barely over his own. She glared at the other black dragon, a silent command to back off.

 _"_ _I see Kami's sister is alive and well. Tell me, what stake do you have with your brother's killer?"_ Angel hissed, not backing away from Zim, nor looking at Fuun as she spoke.

Fuun did not hesitate in pulling Zim under her and hissing, _"He is mine!"_ Those words seemed to hang in the air, drawing everyone's attention to Fuun. Even Nova, who had distanced herself from the other monsters stepped forward in shock. Angel reared back in surprise, not expecting that answer.

 _"_ _I forgave him for slaying Kami, in return, he became mine,"_ Fuun explained. Frost and Agni shook themselves, not believing what they were hearing. Though Zim was a Demi, half man, half monster, they had not expected Fuun to lay claim to him.

 _"_ _Vat?!"_ Nova hissed angrily, rounding on Fuun. The frenzy cloud became heavier as the virus seeped from her scales. _"If anyone holds claim to mein Knight, it ist me!"_

 _"_ _Your Knight? I was the first one he spoke to, that in itself should trump any claim over him you may have!"_ Fuun roared.

Nova only pointed towards Zim with her wing arms, _"I haff marked him as mein, long before he gave himself to you."_ Zim, realizing what Nova was saying, raised his arm to reveal his mark. The black Wolfsangel pulsed in the presence of so much frenzy, but Zim was in complete control in the apex state.

Fuun rounded on him, _"You let her mark you?!"_ she cried out. Zim, deciding against trying to explain himself, only nodded slowly. Fuun whirled back around, grin pulling at her lips, _"Is that all? I marked him too… though I took_ _ **something**_ _away instead of giving him something."_

Nova grew confused for a moment before her eyes widened in understanding, _"You didn't…"_ she trailed off, already knowing it to be true.

 _"_ _I did, and I'll do it again and again, and there's nothing you can do to stop me… because he's_ _ **mine!**_ _"_ Fuun snarled. Nova returned the snarl, lowering herself into an attack position, preparing to launch herself at the Fatalis, who had stood up on her hind legs.

 _"_ _Perhaps I should lay claim to him as well,"_ Angel smirked at the immediate reaction from the two warring dragons.

The snapped their heads towards the blazing black dragon and roared, **_"NO!"_**

Angel's smirk only widened, however, as she countered with a hiss, _"Make me."_ She too prepared to attack Fuun, knowing that she was strong enough to take Nova on alone. But she would need help against the Fatalis. Little did she know; Nova was thinking the same thing.

Zim put his hand up to his face, _how did it escalate into this,_ he wondered. Meanwhile, Frost and Agni watched the three dragons face off. _"Should we step in?"_ Agni asked, not really concerned, just wondering if they should really be fighting when war was around the corner.

 _"_ _I don't think we're strong enough to step in,"_ Frost noted. Agni wholeheartedly agreed, wondering if Zim would be able to stop the violence. He had already bested him and Frost, as well as Angel, but he wondered if Fuun would tip the balance at all.

 **"** **Enough!"** Zim eventually roared, before the three dragons could tear each other to pieces. **"We have more important things to focus on."**

Frost stepped forward, helping to separate the three dragons, _"Yes… do you really think we'll be enough to bring a city like Dundorma to the ground?"_

 **"** **No, that's why we'll have some help. I've enlisted a few, trustworthy, human fighters that will be able to even the playing field,"** Zim explained.

 _"_ _I thought we were fighting the humans, why would they want to help us?"_ Angel growled, stepping away from Fuun, who had not lowered herself back to the ground. Nova had backed away from the other two the moment Zim opened his mouth. He had already stopped her once; she didn't need to be hit by him again.

 **"** **Let's just say they're in a… special position,"** Zim grinned. The dragons shrugged their concerns off, if Zim said they were allies, they would not attack the humans… but that only stood as long as the humans did not attack. Zim knew combining the two armies and having them cooperate was going to be difficult.

XXX

 **That chapter took a bit longer to write than I wanted it to… but, I decided to spend time finishing off** ** _My Sin_** **so I could focus more on this story. And since I finished** ** _My Sin…_** **I can devote all of my writing time towards finishing this story. And we aren't far away from the end, either. Chapters will be coming faster now, probably.**

 **I know that the Alatreon is actually a brownish color, but I found some really good artwork depicting the monster as pure black (and if you want to see that artwork and more, visit Halycon450's DeviantArt page… there's some amazing MH artwork there). And having it be black would make the moniker "blazing black dragon" make sense. I hope that I won't have to explain the One-Winged Angel reference, but let's just say that I nearly named the Alatreon Sephiroth.**

 **Well, Malakai and Zim have prepared their armies. I wonder what the secret weapon Dr. Steele spoke of is? And, the big question, will the monster and human armies be able to fight together? Or will they only destroy each other? Stay tuned to find out!**


	17. Chapter 17

Chapter 17 - Kuddelmuddel:

Author's Note:

 **I would say that we've entered a rapid-fire round, but this chapter took longer to write than I want to admit. And it was harder to write than I'd like to admit as well… and it's shorter than the last two. Anyways, this is an interesting chapter to say the least. So, please, enjoy!**

XXX

 _Kuddelmuddel: An unstructured mess._

The days passed in agonizing slow motion for Zim. Problems began to arise the moment they landed on the hill overlooking Dundorma. The problems were solved quickly, for time was of the essence. The longer they stayed, the more likely they would be spotted. And they needed the element of surprise for this to work.

Zim knew of Dundorma's secret weapon, the Dragon-Seer. Though it was less of a weapon and more of a machine capable of spotting Elder Dragons across the globe. And there were four just outside of Dundorma. Zim also happened to know the weapon's weakness, it required sunlight to function.

Zim had watched Kami block the sun by creating a massive vortex in the sky, a mock eclipse. Fuun and the other dragons had managed to replicate the phenomenon in the sky and maintain it over the course of several days. With the Dragon-Seer blinded, the dragons could hide in plain sight. And, although it was obscenely dark, Zim and the dragons never had any problems seeing.

But the thought of staying undetected didn't bring any of the dragons hope for success. Agni was an advocate for attacking immediately, not waiting for Malakai's army. And Zim could see the logic in that move, they didn't need the humans help. Zim and the four dragons had more than enough strength to take down the city by themselves.

But he couldn't waver, not when the greatest threat the enemy had still remained. The God Slaying sword was still in their hands. Dr. Steele had said she could counter the sword, so Zim would wait for her. Plus, the longer they waited the more likely Dundorma would be caught off-guard. The faux eclipse had only been up for a day and the city was still panicking, trying to find out why the sky had gone dark. Zim believed they would be lulled into a false sense of security by the time they started the attack.

So Zim meditated in his apex state, trying to test its limits. So far, he found none. If he could truly maintain the form indefinitely… why would he bother leaving it? He felt weak as a human, while he was stronger than Gods in his apex state. There seemed to be no downsides to the apex state and no upsides to his human form.

The days blended together and Zim had no idea if had been two days or two weeks. Without the sun to guide them, they were lost. He shut his eyes tighter as he heard yet another complaint from Agni. He and Frost had been arguing for hours. He was grateful for Frost defending his orders, but Agni was still getting to him. If he opened his eyes, he knew he would have to intervene.

He heard a new voice enter the conversation. Although he was still getting used to the newcomers, he would recognize Fuun's voice anywhere. The argument immediately began to escalate, Fuun clearly not helping Frost calm Agni down. Zim would intervene if it started getting too far out of hand.

But the voices left one dragon unaccounted for. He focused his senses, droning out the argument, and tried to find Angel without opening his eyes. Eventually, his sharp hearing trained on her surprisingly light and graceful steps. She was pacing not far from him. He focused on just her steps, drowning out everything else and letting his own heartbeat match her footfalls.

It was calming, to his surprise. She was not pacing nervously like he had thought, rather just trying to pass the time. Either that, or she was harder to read than he thought. And he wouldn't be surprised if that was the case, she was an interesting specimen to say the least. Her birth defect did nothing to stave off her ferocity her species was known for. But she seemed calmer and more calculating than the other Alatreon he had fought, not at all the unstable monstrosity she was painted as.

 **"** **Nervous?"** he asked, without opening his eyes. He was still doing his best to ignore the others' arguing, but he was beginning to wonder why she did not join in on the argument. She had not said a single word for either side, in fact, she had not spoken since they landed. It unnerved him a great deal, considering she had been the most talkative before they left the Sanctuary.

She did not hesitate in her step, though he could feel her burning gaze on him. She changed direction and began pacing towards him. _"I am not nervous. The humans will not know what hit them,"_ she growled, changing directions once again. Now she was pacing in front of him, taking only three steps before turning around and pacing back.

Still, he did not open his eyes. He let out a chuckle, **"That's the idea."** He knew not what else to say. He did not doubt she was not at all worried about the battle. He had not told any of them about the God Slaying sword, except Fuun who already knew. They had no reason not to hesitate in battle, even if facing the sword themselves, they would not falter. It was a risky strategy, but he couldn't have his army afraid of some human weapon. Not if Dr. Steele really could counter it.

She continued her pacing for an unknowable amount of time. He had long since lost track of her position, she was moving far too fast for his mere hearing to track her exact movements. He wondered if she was doing that on purpose. _"I am grateful, by the way,"_ she said, out of the blue.

 **"** **For what?"** he asked. He didn't dare try and open his hearing once more to check if Fuun and the others were still arguing. His heartbeat still matched her even steps, even if he couldn't tell where she was. He was, for the first time in a long time, at peace. Mentally, at least.

 _"_ _For freeing us,"_ she answered. Her voice dropped low as she paused, for less than a second, in her step, _"You may not hear this from the others… but Kami was not the… easiest master."_

Zim's eyebrow arched high, though his eyes remained shut. _"He was needlessly cruel, often destroying entire stretches of land, just because he could. He would lose his temper often, lashing out at the nearest being, crushing them beneath his might. And he demanded absolute loyalty… making… unreasonable requests that he would expect to be followed."_

He grimaced, he knew Kami's cruelty towards his goddess. He had no doubt that the White Fatalis was cruel towards others, or that he used his powers unjustly. But the false God was dead. _"And he was stronger than the three of us combined… there was nothing we could do but obey. So, you can imagine my surprise when I felt his death. In that moment… and only in that moment, I could feel the chains shattering and my soul flying free for the first time in a long time."_

She paused in her step again, longer this time. Concentrating on her, he could hear her head whip back and forth. _"But I was not free. At first, I feared what would take his place. What if it was worse? Would I be able to beat that which slew Kami? Or would I be a slave once more? So, you could imagine my hesitation when you called for us. I did not want to be bound to another cruel master."_

He snorted, **"Am I a cruel master?"**

She chuckled in response, _"When I discovered it was a human who slew Kami, I had my doubts. But you proved yourself, and we bow to you. And… this fight, this war against your own kind, for the benefit of my kind, is more than Kami had ever done for us."_

He thought for a moment. He didn't want to defend Kami, but she was wrong. **"Kami did serve a purpose, however. A purpose that I will embrace,"** he said.

 _"_ _He only ever did anything for selfish reasons. His_ _ **purpose**_ _was to make this world hell! I know what you speak of, but it's quite the opposite. The humans are what stood in_ _ **his**_ _path to world conquest, not the other way around,"_ she snarled, stopping entirely.

His eyes opened slowly to see her glaring at him, she was directly in front of him. Sometime during their conversation, she had started to circle him, which was why he had lost track of her movements. _"And I know the humans are equally power-hungry, and I know why you are willing to destroy them. You are many times more noble than Kami_ _ **ever**_ _was… don't compare yourself to him,"_ she said softly, her eyes shut and her head bowed.

 **"** **How can we be sure of that, though? How can we be sure which of us are motivated by selfishness?"** he asked.

Her eyes narrowed, _"Are you?"_

 **"** **Aren't you?"** he countered, not missing a beat. She reared back, not expecting him to challenge her like that. Her mind worked in overdrive, trying to think of a reason to answer a resounding _no_. But she said nothing. **"That's what I thought. We're all selfish, Angel… and I have started to wonder if it's really fair to all of them."**

 _"_ _Is it? If you are right, then they would do the same in your position,"_ she hissed in retaliation. If nothing else, she should be able to prevent him from sparing the humans. If she was selfish, she would embrace that selfishness, and enjoy each life she took to its fullest.

 **"** **That's not the point… they aren't in my position. As one of the strongest beings on the planet, and it goes the same for you and the other Elder Dragons, shouldn't we be unselfish? I've come to understand that they aren't wrong… they're just blind. Is it fair to kill a blind man because he can't see?"** Zim wondered aloud.

 _"_ _Nature has a habit of eliminating the weak and the lame, just as it tried to do to me. If they are to fall… then it is their destiny,"_ she sighed. He pushed off the ground, standing up and putting his head on level with hers.

Red met orange as they stared at each other, noses barely an inch apart. _"Back off!"_ a new voice hissed, causing Angel to rear her head back out of Zim's reach. Zim turned slightly to see Fuun towering over him. The argument must have ended some time ago, as the other two were staring at him and Angel, waiting to see what would happen next.

Angel smirked at the livid Fatalis, and let out a dramatic sigh, _"It's too bad you're taken, Zim. I guarantee I'm more fun than she is."_ She sauntered off towards the other two dragons, her steps as light and graceful as always.

Fuun's eyes narrowed dangerously as fire leaked from her maw, clearly considering attacking the vexing dragon. **"Don't,"** the command was simple, but Zim reinforced his will by placing a hand on her leg. It drew her attention towards him and away from Angel.

The fire disappeared as she breathed out a sigh, the smoke making her breath visible, even in the darkness. _"I know… I know… I just can't stand even the idea of her taking you,"_ she visibly bristled in anger, _"You are mine, never forget that."_

 **"** **I don't plan to,"** Zim grinned, sitting back down in the grass. His eyes closed tightly once more. The others separated to prevent further arguments and Fuun laid down as well, wrapping her body around him, though giving him a few inches of space as he meditated.

He allowed his senses to sharpen once more. Now with the others silent, he could broaden his hearing, searching for something. Though this nightmare realm he had created prevented his ability to perceive time, he figured Malakai and the others should be coming soon. He heard nothing, however.

Minutes… or hours, he wasn't sure, passed. The only sound was Fuun's even breathing, she must have fallen asleep. And he was approaching that point too, feeling the numbness start to overtake him. He slumped over, his meditative stance ruined, as sleep took him.

XXX

 _Darkness enveloped the world, but he was not afraid. For it was_ _ **his**_ _darkness. He allowed that darkness to surround him as he sunk deeper. It was… calming, to say the least. He had forgotten everything, who he was and what he was doing. All that was left was the darkness. He knew not why he was here, nor why he was still here. A light pierced through the darkness in the shape of a sword… and he screamed out in immense pain._

 _"_ _Zim!"_ his eyes snapped open at the sound of Fuun's voice. She had been nudging him gently and calling his name, trying to wake him up. He blinked a few times, trying to clear his blurry vision.

"What?" he asked. The apex state had faded as he slept. _So it's not something that I can keep going without me being conscious,_ he noted. He shook his head rapidly, regaining his bearings. He had been leaning against Fuun's body as he slept.

 _"_ _You had fallen asleep,"_ she said simply as he reluctantly stood up. He had felt her inner fire through her scales, she was very warm. The sudden rush of cold air caused him to shiver, reminding him that he was not wearing a shirt of any kind.

 **"** **You fell asleep too,"** he argued, letting the apex retake him. The feeling of being cold vanished as his tolerance for temperature skyrocketed.

She snorted, _"I guess so."_ She paused as she tried to remember why she had woken him. The sound of something gliding over the landscape at astonishing speeds filled the air, reminding Fuun of what was going on. _"Something is coming,"_ she said, urging him forward.

That something happened to be a massive airship approaching their position at an alarming rate. Twin jets of flame were being expelled from the back of the ship, resulting in the sound he had been hearing. Zim's eyes widened when he realized that no one on the ship could see a thing.

Fuun was thinking the exact same thing as she reared up on her back legs and expelled a small burst of flame from her mouth. It only lasted a second, but Zim saw the airship change direction and head towards them. Fuun continued letting out small jets of flame from her maw, tiny flashes that only the airship could see. Eventually, the massive warship cut the thrusters on the back and began to slow down.

A huge sail extended from the top of the ship and propellers activated on either side of the hull, bringing the ship in for a smooth landing. A door opened on the hull and a ramp slid out slowly. The first one off the ship was Ruby, who looked surprisingly green as she stumbled over to Zim.

"That was awful…" she groaned as she began to regain her bearings. She shook her head, trying to clear it. She had been on balloon rides hundreds, if not thousands of times, but she had never gone _that_ fast on an aircraft before. Standing on the deck had been her first mistake… and it was downhill from there.

Zim rolled his eyes as he watched Malakai step off the ship next, followed by dozens of troops all dressed in Nargacuga armor. He sensed the Elder Dragons line up behind him so he could easily introduce them to the other army. He saw Ruby take a step back when they gathered behind him, it was still dark as hell and they appeared behind him like ghosts through a wall.

Malakai and his army lined up facing Zim, Ruby standing next to Malakai. There was clear hesitation amongst the humans, Zim could hear whispering through the silence. "Zim," Malakai greeted stiffly. Although he remained calm, a flash of fear was still present in his eyes, one that Zim noticed.

 **"** **Malakai, Dr. Steele didn't come?"** Zim returned the formality, dipping his head slightly. The lab coat toting doctor was nowhere present near Malakai, so Zim assumed she had not showed up.

"Nova didn't come either, I see," Malakai noted, not really surprised. He had expected his goddess to want to stay behind in safety. It was their job to fight for her, not her for them. "Well, Zim, it's nearly impossible to see, but I can feel their gazes on me. Care to introduce them?"

The Demi snorted, but complied with the human's request. Fuun let out another small burst of fire, illuminating the four Elder Dragons for all to see. And then they were swallowed by the darkness once more. **"You've already met Fuun, this is Agni, king of the desert, Frost, lady of the mountain, and Angel, queen of the volcano,"** Zim pointed to the Fatalis, Teostra, Kushala Daora, and Alatreon in turn.

"Well that's quite the entourage you got there," Malakai said. "What's the plan, exactly? We're with you until the end, but I'd like an idea of what we're getting into." He crossed his arms and waited for an answer.

 **"** **It's fairly simple. The moment the attack starts, the doors are going to close, but our advantage lies in how long it'll take them time to set up ballista and cannons on the walls, so we should be able to rappel right over. And then it's as simple as finding and taking out the Chancellor,"** Zim shrugged.

Malakai put a hand on his chin as he thought, "The dragons will be able to just fly over the walls, I assume. So our job is to take the wall and prevent them from manning their heavy artillery and anti-monster weapons?"

 **"** **Aye,"** Zim responded simply, **"I will find and face the Chancellor alone. My side will be focused on causing as much chaos as possible, giving you all time to start to subdue as many people as you possibly can. And… if it comes down to it, draw fire from the dragons."**

Malakai nodded in agreement, it seemed fair. "So what are we looking at in terms of casualties?"

 **"** **I'm hoping to keep casualties to a minimum. This isn't some huge sacrifice, I'm just after the heads of the guild. If we take them out, I should be able to slip seamlessly into place. But… if the hunters start to give you trouble, kill them. Not civilians, just hunters, and** ** _only_** **if necessary,"** Zim growled.

Malakai let out a sigh. He had been, understandably, worried about Zim's plan for the past few days. To him, Zim had appeared as if he only wanted to destroy Dundorma and cripple the guild, not take it over. Malakai would, at the very least, concede that the guild needed new management, and Zim was a perfect candidate.

"Is that all really necessary, though?" a new voice called out. Zim and Malakai turned to see a girl step through the crowd wearing school robes. It was Isa. She carried a wakizashi short sword on her belt and a small shield on her right arm. She intended to fight.

"Oh? And what does the brilliant student have to say?" Malakai growled. Isa had only just graduated from the Wycademy, shown by her continued use of the academy robes. She had been taken under Dr. Steele's wing, clearly training to become a Knight.

"Why don't we just sneak into the city while no one can see? We can take out the Chancellor before anyone else notices and when the lights come back on… boom, we've already won without any extraneous casualties," she shrugged.

Malakai opened his mouth as if to respond, but quickly shut it. His eyebrows came together in confusion. "Actually… that's a good point," he said, turning to Zim, "Why are we doing this the hard way?"

Zim began to cackle, quickly increasing in volume. Malakai raised an eyebrow and Isa took a step backwards in surprise from his reaction. **"That undermines the point. There is no such thing as a peaceful transition of power, if we do as you suggested, then they would only rebel. We're doing this the** ** _hard way_** **to prove a point. Stand against me… and you'll be crushed,"** he chuckled.

Isa gulped nervously before saying, "B-but… m-m-my way is e-e-easier…" It didn't seem to make any sense to her. Why sacrifice the lives? If Zim took over, he could quell any opposition without any help.

Zim slapped a hand on her shoulder, startling her and making her jump, **"I'm going to teach them a lesson they'll** ** _never_** **forget. Fear is the primal motivator, Isa, and once I've instilled it, I can truly take control."**

Isa nodded slowly as Zim took a step back towards his army. He looked back over the crowd, their heads bowed in understanding. They knew that there was no way around this. **"We will rest and wait for a while longer. Once the attack begins, the sky will clear so you all may see,"** Zim explained.

The dragons broke ranks, walking away from the gathering of humans. It was surreal for them, being surrounded by humans that could understand them. They had promised not to harm any of them for any reason. And Zim would assure them that they would not have a reason.

Isa tried to slink away, but Ruby managed to catch her before she could make her escape. Zim and Malakai were still in earshot as Ruby hissed, "Didn't Dr. Steele tell you to stay behind?"

Isa let out a nervous chuckle, "S-s-she might h-h-have mentioned… i-it." She managed to break free from Ruby's grip and disappear into the crowd. Ruby glared at her retreating form, shaking her head. A youngling disobeying her superior, at least Dr. Steele would have some choice words for the foolish girl when they got back.

"So… now we wait," Ruby sighed, turning back to Zim, only to see he had trudged back over to Fuun. She felt a twinge of anger, but quickly suppressed it. He was only preparing his army for battle… why was he laying down next to her?

XXX

 _Static… why does everything hurt? The darkness had disappeared and all that remained was a blinding light. Light… filled with pain. The world was on edge, nothing made sense anymore. He could remember everything… dead, they were all dead. How could he let them die? It was too late… static._

Vigorous shaking brought Zim to his conscious state once more. His eyes snapped open, a brilliant green, the apex state had faded once again. "What?" he growled at Ruby, annoyed for having his sleep disturbed once again. Fuun shifted slightly, still asleep.

"We have a problem," Ruby hissed. Zim's eyes widened as he shot up. He followed Ruby as she carefully stepped around Fuun and walked over to the edge of the hill, overlooking Dundorma. Malakai was already waiting there for him, scowl entrenched on this face.

The apex state took him once more as he growled, **"What's wrong?"** Malakai let out a deep breath, blowing out smoke. He dropped his cigarette on the ground and stomped it out.

"What do you see?" he asked, gesturing towards Dundorma. Zim's eyes narrowed as he tried to pick out anything out of the ordinary. But he found nothing, so he shook his head. "Damn it. That's what I had thought, but I had to be sure. I sent scouts, two of them, to the city. Do you know what they found? It's on lockdown, Zim! They know we're here… or at least that we're _coming_!"

 **"** **The city is on lockdown?"** Zim echoed, confused. The eclipse should've hidden their entrance; it should've cloaked them until it was time to strike… how had they seen them?

"The doors are shut, they couldn't get in at all. There were cannons and ballista already set up and manned on the wall. My men estimate that there are over a _thousand_ hunters in that city, armed and ready for us!" Malakai snarled, clenching his fist tightly, "They had been waiting for several days, Zim."

Zim breathed in and out, internally seething, but remaining calm outwardly, he could not panic in this situation. **"We were betrayed,"** he hissed, realizing that it was the only possibility. There was a discrepancy between the number of days he had arrived and when Malakai told his army about the attack. If one of them had warned the guild, they had enough time before the eclipse went up.

"Obviously!" Malakai threw his hands up in the air, pacing a few steps away. He put a hand up to his mouth and said almost too softly for them to hear, "So what do we do now?"

"We find the rat," Ruby growled. "It's the only way we can be sure we won't be stabbed in the back during the attack. They already know we're here, time is no longer of the essence."

 **"** **It has to be a human, none of the dragons have any motive to betray us,"** Zim noted.

"Agreed. It must be a human. I'm reasonably confident it's not Ruby," Malakai sighed.

"And I'm sure it's not Malakai."

It was silent after that. The trio had managed to rule out each other, but they had another sixty soldiers to go over. Trying to figure out which one would be next to impossible, and even if they did figure it out… it was unlikely that they'd get him to confess. **"What if it was Dr. Steele?"** Zim asked.

Ruby immediately shouted, "No! It can't be her." It was at that moment Zim noticed she was carrying two weapons. Her bow as always, but there was a strange sword hanging on her back next to her bow. A sword Zim had never seen before.

"We cannot be sure, for all we know… she knew we were going to fail," Malakai sighed. He was reluctant to even consider it as a possibility, but his anger got the better of him. He wanted justice, at whatever the cost.

"Malakai!" Ruby reprimanded, eyes narrowed. "You forgot she gave us the airship to get us all here. If she was really trying to betray us, wouldn't she have us walk here, giving them more time to prepare?"

Malakai shook his head hesitantly, "The airship is worthless in battle, whether we win or lose, it'll survive. All she saw was an opportunity to test out a prototype… she's crafty enough to know that the guild doesn't need more time to prepare."

Ruby snarled and pulled the sheathed sword from her back. "Then why would she give me this, then?" she hissed, drawing the blade partially. The blade was pure black. "This is supposed to counter the God Slaying sword!"

Zim marveled at the beauty of the black blade. It looked like an exact replica of the God Slaying sword, except for its color. Malakai was not impressed, however, sighing and shaking his head, "That's no guarantee, she could've just handed you any random sword and said it would counter the God Slaying sword. I'm not convinced."

Ruby sheathed the blade violently and slung it back on her back. She opened her mouth to growl something else, but Zim cut in, **"I don't think we can rule her out, Ruby. Let's at least look at the other soldiers before we make our decision… one of them might crack."**

Malakai nodded and led the way to the soldier's camp. Zim hesitated in following, remaining behind to say a word to Ruby, **"I know… I don't think she's guilty, and I don't think he believes that either. We've just got nothing to go on."**

"I know," Ruby said, her voice barely a whisper. There was still something tugging in the back of her mind, however. A violent reaction that demanded her to defend Dr. Steele. The doctor had given her something and allowed her to regain control… but she feared she was losing it again. And it was Malakai's fault.

The duo caught up to Malakai who waltzed into the soldiers' camp and shouted out, "Alright! Line up, all of you! We have a few questions to ask each of you!" The soldiers responded immediately, dropping what they were doing and lining up in four rows of fifteen. Malakai noticed Zim and Ruby and said, "Tell them to drop the eclipse, we don't need it anymore."

Fuun, who had woken up and wandered over to Zim, heard Malakai's order. She let out a deep breath as she let go of the vortex in the sky, no longer funneling energy into creating it. Minutes passed before the sun shone again, high in the sky. The light hit Zim like a Diablos, causing him to shield his eyes, lest they be burned.

The soldiers had similar reactions to the sun returning. Malakai ignored the sun, however, and began interrogating his men. He asked simple questions, grabbing some by the face and looking them in the eyes, before tossing them aside, growling, "No." and moving on.

"He's not going to find anything," Ruby sighed. Her hope was starting to wane, the soldiers were all loyal to Malakai and their goddess Nova. It seemed as if the only one who could be responsible was Dr. Steele.

 **"** **I doubt it,"** Zim returned the sentiment. Malakai eventually made it through a large portion of the soldiers. He turned around with a heavy sigh, throwing his arms up in the air once more.

"It can't be any of them. They're too loyal… it has to be Dr. Steele," Malakai growled. He turned back to his soldiers before immediately turning back towards Zim, finger pointed straight up in the air. An idea had clearly struck him. "Unless…" he started, but was cut off.

 _"_ _Zim!"_ the cry was short as it was loud, but ultimately too late. A thin, curved blade slipped into the Demi's chest, bursting out the other side with a splatter of blood. Zim stared at the blade that had pierced his heart, confusion welling in his eyes. He dropped to one knee with a hiss.

 _It burns._

The world felt as if it had been set on fire. He could see the panicked form of Ruby leaning down and pulling the blade free from his chest. He saw, out of the corner of his eye, Fuun with fire streaming from her mouth preparing to attack his assailant. And he saw his assailant standing over him, grin firmly set in her face. "Isa," Malakai finished, glaring at the betrayer.

XXX

 **Boom, cliffhanger. Bet none of you saw that coming… except for maybe Dragon-God, who had guessed (correctly, mind you) that Isa was the girl from Ruby's memories that always wore a mask. So, we get to see a bit of a dynamic develop between Angel and Zim, we see Fuun still as protective as always, and Ruby beginning to question the relationship between Zim and the Fatalis. Then, of course, you all get to see the weapon that's supposed to destroy the God Slaying sword… but will it work? And, of course, Isa's betrayal… and how did she manage to harm Zim in his apex state? All that and more, stay tuned until next time!**


	18. Chapter 18

Chapter 18 - Sitzfleisch:

Author's Note:

 **Well, I guess none of you saw it coming. But that's not a bad thing, betrayals are supposed to be surprising (though I did sort of give you all a hint). Oh, and Dragon-God, you** ** _are_** **getting better at looking deeper in my work… I only implied what your review asked about. Anyways, please, enjoy!**

XXX

 _Sitzfleisch: A person who can weather something incredibly tough or boring… literally seat meat_

"Too late," Isa grinned, breaking out into a loud laugh. Fuun roared loudly before launching a large fireball at the former student. Isa brought up her shield, blocking the fireball, though she was still blasted off her feet.

Ruby snarled and swung Isa's own blade at her, only for it to shatter against her shield. Ruby dropped the useless hilt and lashed out, snatching the shield from her opponent's arm. Isa retaliated by striking Ruby in the chest, causing a rush of air to leave her lungs. Ruby managed to bring her arms up to her face to guard against Isa's crazed strikes. Each blow felt as if she had been pummeled by ten men. All the while, Isa never stopped laughing.

As Ruby was forced back by Isa, her strikes never waning in strength, she felt something snap within her. A pipe that had been sealed was suddenly broken. And with it… a flow of power Ruby had never expected shot through her system, electrifying her and giving her strength without bounds.

A feral roar escaped her lips as she swung her guard, throwing Isa off her assault and onto the defense as Ruby slammed her fist into Isa. The former student's guard went up, just barely in time, as Ruby's fist smashed into Isa. The younger girl was forced backwards from the sheer force of the blow. Ruby continued to attack, not giving Isa a moment's rest as blow after blow rained down on the quickly weakening woman's guard.

With another loud snarl, Ruby broke through the guard and slammed into Isa, knocking her down. A cry escaped the girl's mouth, clearly not expecting to be overwhelmed like she had, as a dull thud accompanied her to the ground. She struggled to her feet, but only made it to her knees before Ruby latched onto her throat and gave her a hard squeeze, lifting her off the ground with legs dangling in the air.

 _Progress to Ruby's explosion: 65%_

 _"_ _I'll tear you limb from limb you bitch!"_ Ruby snarled, squeezing even harder.

Isa choked before sputtering out, "Don't curse, you're better than that…" Ruby's eyes widened in anger as she flipped the girl over her shoulder and slammed her down on the ground again. She stomped on her shoulder and grabbed the trapped girl's arm. She pulled and twisted, a sickening crack was heard as the arm was dislocated and the bone was snapped. Isa hissed in pain.

 **"** **Enough,"** Zim's calm voice cut through Ruby's haze as he placed a hand on her shoulder. She froze from the contact before turning to face him. The wound on his chest was still present, but it was closing at an alarming rate. Upon seeing the wound, Ruby tried to lunge at Isa again, growl leaving her mouth.

But Zim did not allow Ruby to attack Isa. He tightened his grip on her shoulder and pulled her close to him. He held her gently, just as she did when he was close to losing himself to the frenzy… just as she was now. **"You've done enough, it's time to stop,"** Zim whispered softly. Ruby trembled in his grasp, but did not fight him. He sent a glare at Fuun who began to growl at his contact with Ruby.

Malakai stepped forward, pulling one of his blades from his back and plunging it into Isa's arm, pinning her to the ground. "I guess we can rule out Dr. Steele as our betrayer," he observed. Zim nodded, allowing Ruby to step away from him. She did so and managed to reign herself in, not lunging at Isa, though she glared at the pinned girl with blazing pink eyes.

Zim dropped down so that he was just barely hovering over her. He stared into her eyes for a few moments before saying, **"That was not a very smart thing to do… was it? Why did you do it?"**

Isa stared right back, fear absent in her eyes. The girl that had guided Zim through the Wycademy, the girl that had helped Malakai's army build the airship, the girl that had disobeyed her superior to fight… was gone. In her place was a being Zim did not recognize, none of them did. They had never expected that the shy, timid girl was actually a double agent. She began to laugh once more, a hollow chuckle that set fear into the hearts of many of the men gathered around her, watching the confrontation unfold.

"Oh, it was a very smart thing to do. The Wystones worked… you aren't invincible, not anymore at least," she said between breaths. It seemed she was ignorant to the amount of pain she was in.

 **"** **Why?"** Zim growled again, trying to prompt her to give an explanation.

"That's cute, Zim. Don't you remember? Ruby… surely you remember, don't you?" she grinned as confusion glossed over Ruby's face. Isa snorted, "That's disappointing. And Mother was so **_proud_** of you, even after you ran. You're still her only success, you know?"

Ruby's eyes widened in understanding, _"Don't you_ _ **dare**_ _use that name around me,"_ she all but roared, lunging at her again. Zim managed to hold her back, but Ruby had gotten a lot stronger, putting up more of a fight than he had intended.

"That's good, you haven't forgotten. She misses you and would be more than willing to take you back… if you surrendered yourself to her once more," Isa grinned as her words succeeded in pissing Ruby off even further.

"Who is Mother?" Malakai asked, getting involved in the interrogation. He took Zim's place, bending down so he was hovering just above the trapped girl.

"She is Mother, no more, no less," Isa answered cryptically before turning to Zim. "When she discovered you were still alive… well, I guess we can now say that Ruby wasn't her _only_ success."

Zim dragged Ruby back once more, silently ordering her to leave Isa alone. She was still cracking, but he had managed to contain a majority of the frenzy. He turned back to Isa, snarl on his lips, **"What does this Mother want with me?"**

" _Everything_."

 **"** **Who is Mother?"**

"She is Mother, nothing more, nothing less."

 **"** **What does she want?"**

"Everything."

It continued back and forth like that for some time, neither gaining the upper hand. Isa refused to give a clear answer, and her laughter only grew louder after each repeated question. Eventually, Zim gave up and said, **"Did she send you to kill me?"**

That caught her off-guard. Her laughter halted as she thought for a moment. "Why would she want to kill you? There's more use for you alive than dead!" she chuckled.

Zim let out a sigh, this was going nowhere. A devious grin stretched across his face when he thought of something that he could do. Isa didn't look the least bit concerned by Zim's expression, but did shift slightly on the ground, trying to get free. **"It's too bad** ** _you're_** **no longer useful to us alive,"** Zim hissed, hoping to strike fear into her heart.

But it only elicited a grin across her face as she smirked, "I was thinking the exact same thing." Her arm cracked back into place, the bone repairing itself and resetting in her socket. She lashed out at Zim, catching him off-guard and slamming into his face. Although her punch did not hurt him, it did surprise him, causing him to back off.

She grabbed the blade caught in her arm and pulled it free. Before Malakai could even pull his other sword out to counter her, she plunged the blade _into herself._ She stabbed the sword deep into her neck, blood pouring from the wound. A wordless chuckle escaped her lips and she said no more.

Zim arched an eyebrow, confused as to why she would just go and kill herself, until he heard the tiniest of _clicks_. He reacted without thinking, moving quickly and slamming into Malakai, shielding him from the blast that emanated from Isa's deceased body. The explosion had a small radius, but shrapnel was launched several meters outside of the blast, catching several soldiers in vital areas. However, the shrapnel only bounced off Zim, and could not reach Malakai.

Zim turned back around to see a bloody crater where Isa had died. "What the hell was that?" Malakai asked, stepping around Zim to see Isa's remains. Ruby rushed back over at the sound of the explosion, snickering slightly at the bloody remains of the girl in the mask.

 **"** **A complication,"** Zim answered, letting out a deep sigh. He glanced at Ruby, seeing that she was fine. He rubbed his temples, trying to figure out what to do next. Malakai watched him pace back and forth as the soldiers righted themselves. Some let out curses from their wounds, others yelled in grief for fallen friends and loved ones. This had to end.

 **"** **There's been a change in plans!"** Zim roared, silencing all and gaining their attentions. The Elder Dragons gathered behind the soldiers, waiting to hear what he had to say, except for Fuun, who stood behind the apex monster.

 **"** **For those of you who have yet to realize what has happened, we have been betrayed,"** Zim let his words hang in the air as mummers of anger spread through the crowd before quickly dying down as he continued. **"Dundorma has been alerted to our presence and they are ready for us… our previous plan is no longer going to work."**

He took a deep breath, trying not to let out all his anger at once, before letting it out slowly. **"We cannot allow them to remain behind those walls like the sickly soft children they are, we cannot allow them to win just because they are ready for us. We still have the strength to bring them down. Thus I ask… are you willing to follow me into the fray? Are you willing to fight for what you believe in, despite our disadvantages? You will meet former comrades over the brink who will not hesitate to oppose you! Because you must fight for each step you take. Are you willing… to fight a different type of war? Are you willing to fight a merciless war, for our enemies will have none! Are you willing to fight to the end, for that's what our enemies will do? Are you willing… to bring the guild to its knees and beat it into submission?"**

The crowd stared at him in silence. Ruby stepped forward and shouted, "I am!" shattering the tranquility. Malakai followed suit, and before long each soldier had stepped forward and repeated the phrase. I am! they shouted, the fighting spirit rising in their ranks.

Zim smirked as he clenched his fist, ready to continue his speech, **"We are a clenched fist ready to strike down those who oppose us with our might! But after this betrayal, a simple war is no longer sufficient."** He paused in his speech, the crowd quieting so they may hear what left he had to say. **"** ** _We need a massive war!_** **A war so grand as to shake hell itself!"**

The crowd burst out cheering again, the anger of being betrayed fueled their fires. They were ready to fight, and they had a target. All they needed was a plan. **"Then let us fight to the death! For we shall so them no more mercy than they shall show us! Let break into their stronghold and tear them apart limb by limb! Let us remind them what it feels like to live in** ** _fear_** **! Let us remind them that there are more things between heaven and hell than are dreamt of in their philosophy. Friends… let's bring them** ** _hell_** **,"** he finished, applause and cheering echoing around the hill. They no longer needed to be quiet, they wanted their enemy to know they were coming soon. That they were coming now…

XXX

"Why are we doing this?" Wolf complained yet again. He was leaning on his greatsword lazily, eyes only half open. He had been standing along with hundreds of other low ranks in front of the massive doors to Dundorma.

"Because the alarm had been called," Eve hissed, getting tired of answering the same question over and over again. The alarm had been sounded and every hunter close enough to respond armed themselves and made it into Dundorma. Then the sky went dark.

But they stayed and guarded the door. They didn't know what they were waiting for, none of the low ranks were in the loop. The few high ranks sent to make sure everyone was in position didn't know either, but the majority consensus was that the G-Ranks knew something. But no one knew where they were.

The doors had closed the moment the sky went dark and they hadn't opened since, so it wasn't like they could just leave. They would have to weather this storm. Dozens of high ranks manned ballista and cannons on top of Dundorma's walls, ready to fire at… whatever was coming. The eclipse had faded some time ago, and yet the attack never came.

"Come on! The sun is out again, we should at least be informed of what's going on," Wolf yelled as loudly as he dared. A few high ranks gave him a dirty look, immediately silencing him, though they likely agreed with him.

"I wonder what Zim is doing," Rose sighed, breaking the silence once more. Eve rolled her eyes. Zim had told them to go to Val Harbor and stay out of whatever it was that he was doing, but after the alarm had been called, every single hunter in Val Harbor went over to Dundorma. They had no choice.

"Whatever it is, I bet that he's the cause of all this," Eve said, gesturing to all the soldiers just standing around, weapons drawn, waiting for something that was likely never coming.

"Eve! There's no proof that Zim is the cause of any of this," Rose said, sounding quite shocked at even the notion. Zim wouldn't attack the guild, he was a hunter, just like them.

"Did you see that thing in the sky? Do you know what else could do that? A Gore Magala, that's what," Eve snarled, stepping closer to Rose. "And Zim's got the virus, remember? What if he's becoming more like them?"

"He is like them," Wolf said before Rose could respond. They turned to look at him, prompting him to continue, "He snapped when rescuing us. Malakai had said that he nearly broke completely, we can't be sure he's still all right."

"I can't believe the two of you, turning on Zim just because he's sick!" Rose said. Eve and Wolf shared a look as Rose opened her mouth to say more, but was cut off by the war gong ringing. The loud sound echoed throughout Dundorma, the sound of war. The trio froze up, suddenly realizing that this was all real when the deafening sound of cannons firing began.

"What's going on?!" Wolf yelled out over the sound of the cannons and the gong continually being rung. Everyone turned towards the door, expecting it to be suddenly blown open. The door held strong, but no one could answer Wolf.

"Look out!" a hunter cried out as fireballs began to rain down from the sky. Wolf righted himself, holding up his greatsword like a shield just as a fireball slammed into the ground next to him. Rose dove for cover before setting up her heavy bowgun. Wolf glanced up to see a massive silhouette pass above them.

Everyone armed with a bowgun aimed up at the shadow in the sky and began to fire as fireballs continued to rain down. Eve stood back to back against Wolf, holding her shield up to protect both of them from a fireball that would've killed him. The shadow circled back around the city and a wave of fire streamed from its maw, torching everyone stationed on the wall. High rank hunters rushed up to replace the lost men, but the unknown enemy landed on the wall, preventing them from reaching the heavy artillery.

 _A Fatalis!_ Wolf recognized, horror welling within him. The black dragon swept its tail across the stairs, slamming the helpless reinforcements against the wall so hard Wolf swore he heard bones break. Fire continued to flow from its maw as it torched cannons and ballista alike. The bowgunners continued to fire at it, but they were having very little luck.

The monster turned and spat a massive fireball at the group of bowgunners, slamming into the mass and killing all of them. Wolf's eyes widened when he surveyed the other damages to the city. The wall was defenseless, dozens were dead already, and his weapons were useless against a Fatalis. _Why did the guild call for low ranks? Are we just fodder to them?_ Wolf mentally screamed as the beast took off once more on massive bat wings.

Wolf squinted as he swore he saw someone _riding_ the monster. His eyes widened when the figure _leapt_ from the dragon's back. Wolf watched in fascination as the being crashed into the ground like one of its mount's fireballs. The ground cracked and gave way to the weight and velocity of the being, leaving a crater in the hard concrete. To Wolf's surprise, Zim stepped out of the crater and immediately attacked the nearest hunter.

"Told you," Eve growled, moving passed the stunned Wolf and rushing towards the Demi. Zim made short work of the low rank hunters around him, their weapons completely ineffective against his tough skin. He carried no weapon of his own, preferring to tear his opponents to shreds with his bare hands.

Her switch ax morphed into the all-powerful ax form as she swung at Zim, only for the blade to bounce right off him. He paused, dropping the half-dead hunter he had been carrying and turned slowly to face Eve. His blazing red eyes met her suddenly terrified gaze. He lunged at her, grabbing her by the throat and tossing her through a building. She would not be getting up.

Wolf still stood stock still as Zim approached him, **"Stand down, or be destroyed. This city… is mine,"** he snarled. Wolf could only nod and run to check on Eve, who had been knocked unconscious. Rose followed him, not even looking at the Demi.

Zim turned back towards the door, fighting off hunters that threw themselves at him. _Crunch! Snap! Splat!_ Zim's eye twitched when blood splattered across his bare chest and face. He had punched a hold straight through an opponent before he could even defend himself. He paused, ignoring the weapons and bullets bouncing off of him as he made a half-assed attempt to wipe the blood off his face. He only ended up smearing it.

Shrugging, he continued on his war path, killing all that stood before him. He vaguely noted Fuun landing somewhere near him before fire engulfed the area around him. She snorted at his unamused expression, if it was anyone else, she would've toasted him. But the fire had done nothing to the apex human. It was effective, however, in exterminating the many pests that had surrounded the human at once.

Zim grabbed a hold of the mechanism that opened and closed the door. Fuun covered him, fighting off hunter after hunter, burning most and devouring others, as he opened the door by himself. It normally took upwards of ten strong men to open the door, but Zim had no trouble doing it alone.

The doors swung open and the rest of Zim's forces screamed into the city. Frost was first, a massive wall of wind surrounded her and the army, protecting them from everything from cannon balls to ballista bolts. The remaining hunters panicked, but were too slow in running away as the armies collided into each other. The Elder Dragons made quick work word of the weaker hunters as the humans prevented them from taking too much damage.

Zim split off from the group, intent on finding the Chancellor and the Great Elder so this could all end. Ruby passed by him, bow drawn, rapidly firing into the swarm of hunters, never missing her shot. Fuun took off back into the air, continuing to burn the city.

XXX

The small army made their way through the streets of Dundorma, leaving fire and ash in their wake. The Elder Dragons were highly effective in annihilating any hunter that stood up to them, the humans hardly had to do any work. But Ruby kept firing at hunters anyways, never missing the killing shot.

The plan had changed drastically, no longer was it about preserving the guild or the city of Dundorma. The city was adamant on defeating the attacking army, low ranks and high ranks alike attacked with no regard for their lives. Zim realized that Dundorma would no longer stand down and surrender, so he sought to smite this defiance.

While he dealt with the Chancellor and the Great Elder, the army was supposed to sweep through the streets, slaughtering any hunter they came across, low, high, or G rank. This was a battle to send the guild to oblivion, no hunter was to be left alive. But Ruby was starting to get worried, not a single G-Rank had been spotted.

There were twenty-eight G-Rank hunters, minus Malakai, Zim, and herself made twenty-five. And yet, not even the God Slaying sword had been spotted. Hundreds of hunters had already been slaughtered, but not a single Knight had been slain. _This is too easy,_ Ruby growled internally, but kept firing into the swarm of hunters.

She vaguely noted Malakai trotting up beside her. He hadn't even drawn his weapons. "Where are all the G-Ranks?" she yelled as she mercilessly planted an arrow between a low rank's eyes. The swarm was beginning to thin. Frost had been extremely helpful in eliminating the enemies' most effective offense, bows and bowgunners. The wind shield that she generated not only kept the number of hunters that could attack the group to a minimum, but also completely eliminated projectile damage.

Suddenly, the hunters scattered like cockroaches, disappearing into alleyways and vanishing down corridors. Ruby raised an eyebrow, but she made no comment at their departure. Had they won? Frost did not drop her wind shield and no one dropped their weapons. Malakai drew his, expecting the worst.

"Look out!" a voice cried out next to Ruby. She whipped her head around to stare at the man who had shouted to see him pointing up into the sky, fear written on his face. She and several others followed his finger to see the shadow that was Fuun fall out of the sky. Ropes had attached themselves to Fuun's body, entangling her in a mess of wires that prevented her from flying, causing her to plummet to the ground. The black dragon landed hard on the ground, cracking the concrete.

"Ballista binder," Ruby hissed, recognizing the weapon used to bring Fuun down. She was still alive, struggling to free herself, but only succeeded in writhing on the ground. _Who fired the binder?_ Ruby wondered. She had thought they destroyed all the ballista in the city… they had missed the ones attached to the guild hall.

She felt a tap on her shoulder, causing her to turn her head slightly to see Malakai standing right beside her. He directed her attention behind the small army, towards three hunters dressed in pure white armor approaching the shielded group slowly, weapons drawn. "There's your G-Ranks," he said.

She saw a lancer, a sword and shield user, and a longsword user. She groaned as she recognized them. The seventh, the fifth, and the third best hunters in the world respectively stood before them. This was where the hard part started.

The lancer cracked his neck and charged forward, lance pointed straight towards the Knights. "Archers, fire on my mark!" Ruby yelled out, nocking an arrow and taking aim at the hunter. Ten others made their way through the crowd and stood next to her, all ready to fire.

"Fire!" she cried out as she loosed her arrow. Arrows pelted the hunter, only for them to bounce harmlessly off his shield. He easily broke through the wind barrier and stabbed at Ruby with his lance. She dodged to the side and then rolled forward as he swept the weapon through the bow users. They were cleaved in twain, their bodies dropping lifelessly to the ground as he turned back to Ruby.

The other two G-Ranks broke through the shield and began their assault as well. The lancer disengaged from Ruby, backing up to protect the sword and shield user, who sheathed his weapon. Malakai met the longsword user head on, blades scraping against each other, sparks flying from the two high powered weapons. _"Malakai,"_ the hunter hissed, throwing Malakai off of him.

The sword and shield user began to throw knifes at Frost, each one hitting their target. Although the knifes did little damage, bursts of purple liquid accompanied each blade. It only took a minute before Frost stumbled and dropped to her knees, wind barrier fading. The low and high rank hunters that had retreated reappeared and continued their assault on the Knights. Without the wind barrier, the bowgunners picked off many of the soldiers. _Daoras cannot keep their wind barrier up when their poisoned,_ Ruby remembered when she saw Frost shake her head viciously, trying to stay conscious. The knives really did a number on her.

The soldiers were quickly becoming overwhelmed by unconquerable odds, even with the Elder Dragons doing their best to fight off most of the swarm of hunters. Ruby fired a few arrows at the seemingly defenseless sword and shield user, but he drew his weapon and blocked her arrows with his shield. The lancer lowered himself, clearly preparing to charge at her. Her eyes widened as she panicked, unsure of what to do against the two G-Rank hunters. She was outmatched.

Until she heard a furious roar and the sound of tearing as Fuun freed herself. The Fatalis charged into battle, intercepting the lancer, and protecting Ruby from impalement. Fuun threw the hunter into a building, but it didn't seem to faze the hunter in the slightest. The two collided again, Fuun struggling to bite the hunter's head off and the hunter running circles around the monster, poking at her when he had the chance.

The sword and shield user glared at Ruby, clearly not giving up just because he was alone against her. She put her bow on her back and drew the longsword Dr. Steele had given her. She knew that her bow would be no match against his shield, she needed a more direct way to fight him. She swung her blade overhead, slamming down on his shield.

He lashed out with his small sword, trying to catch her while her weapon was otherwise occupied. She felt that surge of power once more, surrendering herself to it again. She let go of the longsword, she had not expected to be able to cleave him in half in a single blow, nor did she expect to be able to go toe-to-toe with him in sword play… but she was definitely stronger than he was.

She grabbed a hold of his arm, twisting it, and pulling it to the side before it had the chance to plunge into her stomach. She pulled him forward, having forced his arm to lock in place so that he had no choice but to stumble towards her. She kicked at his knee with all her might, causing blood and bone to burst out the back of his leg as she shattered the bone in a single strike. He let out a scream and dropped to the ground, his arm still firmly in her grasp.

She wrenched the blade from his hand and jammed it into his neck, ending his life. He dropped to the ground limply, she shot him a single condescending glance before picking up the weapon Dr. Steele had given her and sheathing it on her back. She pulled her bow out again and nocked an arrow, aiming for the bowgunners that had taken to the rooftops to fire down at her allies.

The Elder Dragons turned the tides back against the hunters, slaughtering them with fire and lightning with a twin assault from Agni and Angel. Fuun lashed out with her tail catching her opponent by surprise, wrenching the shield from his hands and sending him flying into the air. Ruby took careful aim and fired at him, piercing him through a weak spot where his helmet met his chest plate. She then turned back to picking off the bowgunners one-by-one.

Malakai was still fighting against his opponent, but he was quickly gaining ground. The G-Rank hunter couldn't keep up with Malakai's furious dual blade dance with his slower longsword. Malakai easily outmaneuvered the hunter, breaking through his guard and raising his blade to strike down his opponent, only for an arrow to appear through the hunter's skull, sending droplets of blood onto Malakai's black armor.

Malakai glared at Ruby as the hunter fell to his knees, dropping his sword, and then dropping to the ground facedown. "I had him," he growled. Ruby only smirked as Frost righted herself, throwing up the wind barrier again. Ruby knocked another arrow as she and Malakai took the lead once more, forging a path through Dundorma.

XXX

Zim made his way to the steps of the Great Hall. If the Chancellor was anywhere, it should be in the hall where the Great Elder sat. Elite guards swarmed him, all wearing blue armor and carrying lances. Their weapons bounced harmlessly off him. No one during this entire battle posed him any threat, whatever Isa had done had not affected him.

He grabbed the nearest guard by the helmet, crushing the metal plating and smashing his skull. The others continued to attack him, but they made no progress as he tossed the guard aside and lashed out at the next one. There was a resounding clang as Zim's fist dented the man's shield, sending him flying backwards.

Clanging and snapping reverberated through the area as Zim broke bone and dented metal at his leisure, easily overwhelming the guards. Soon, it was just him and one other left, the only female guard. She backed her way up the steps, abandoning her helmet and shield, but never moved her lance from pointing at her target. Zim's heart.

He stalked her up the steps slowly, letting the fear and panic sink in deep within her bones. She backed up to the closed doors of the Great Hall, trapped with nowhere else to go. Tears streamed down her face, but she did not run nor did she lower her weapon. She was terrified, but she would fight until she died. And Zim was more than happy to oblige.

He kicked her with all his might directly in her heavy chest plate, sending her flying against the doors. Her body shattered upon contact with the hardened wood, bursting asunder, and splattering blood and gore across the door. The door held strong against the collision, not budging under the stress.

Zim growled a curse to himself before backtracking down the massive set of stairs. Then he took off at full speed, up the stairs and right up to the door before pulling his arm back and smashing into the door with his fist, following through with his entire body. The door splintered and exploded inwards, sending wood chunks into the Great Hall.

In the back of the Hall, the Great Elder sat on his immense throne, the Chancellor not far from him. He held the simple sheath of the God Slaying sword in his hands. Zim grinned, **"Out of all the hunters in this city… they send** ** _you_** **to fight me?"**

The Chancellor gulped, but drew the God Slaying sword, its golden light released onto the world. "Do not underestimate me… I have plenty of experience dealing with fools such as yourself," he said confidently, though his face betrayed all of the fear he felt in facing the unstoppable Zim.

The two approached each other until they came within a meter of the other in the center of the Great Hall. Zim carried no weapon, and the weapon that the Chancellor wielded was strong enough to cut through Zim's impenetrable outer shell. The Great Elder lifted his staff and slammed it down on the ground, signaling the fight to begin.

The Chancellor struck first, a horizontal slash designed to bisect the apex human. But Zim was prepared for that, he rolled under the strike and pulled the Chancellor's legs out from under him. The older man collapsed on the ground hard, disorienting him, but Zim did not pounce on the weakened man. He backed away instead and allowed his foe to get up off the ground.

The Chancellor struggled to his feet and brandished the sword again. He was too slow to fight Zim, and the apex human knew it. The Chancellor began to swing at the former hunter wildly, just trying to land a blow, only for Zim to sidestep and dodge each strike. A grin was present on Zim's face during the entire confrontation… _he was enjoying this_. He was dancing around the Chancellor, cackling like a madman, never striking at the older man.

With a roar of rage, the Chancellor thrust forward, trying to catch Zim off-guard. The apex human jumped to the side, evading the impaling move, and grabbed ahold of the Chancellor's sword arm. He wrenched the God Slaying sword from the man's tired, old hands and tossed it aside, far from the man's reach.

Zim began to wail on him, punching him in the gut, breaking a few bones, and finally tossing him into one of the many pillars in the room. The Chancellor landed hard against the stone pillar, coughing up blood as he slid down and slumped onto the floor. His spine had been broken after that collision, he wasn't going to be able to walk.

The apex human approached the Chancellor slowly, savoring his victory. He noticed the Great Elder standing out of the corner of his eye and brandishing his staff. He turned just in time to put his guard up as the massive staff slammed into his crossed arms. He stood strong against the blow, fighting not to be thrown across the room as the huge Wyverian hit him with all his might. Zim slid against the floor from the force of the blow, but did not go flying.

A feral grin stretched across his face when he regained traction on the slippery floor and _shoved_ the staff backwards, throwing the Great Elder off balance and off his feet from the shift in momentum. The entire Hall shook from the impact the Elder made against the floor. Zim ignored the immobile Chancellor to finish off the Great Elder, who would eventually be able to struggle to his feet.

The fear that radiated off of the Great Elder was palpable, Zim enjoyed it greatly as he made his way over to the Wyverian's head. Those beady eyes pleaded for mercy, but Zim only grinned as he plunged his fist through the Elder's bulbous head, splattering blood and brain matter over his chest and the floor. He extracted his arm from his deceased foe's head, flicking brain parts from it.

He turned back to the Chancellor, walking back over to him. The Chancellor had tried to run away, but was only able to crawl a few feet before Zim made it to him. **"Where is the guildmaster?"** Zim growled. The Chancellor blubbered something incomprehensible, causing Zim to grip one of his arms and twist it violently, repeating the question.

"He's not here," a new, female, voice echoed through the Hall. Zim dropped the Chancellor and turned around to see a female with white hair bend down to pick up the God Slaying sword. She wore black and gold armor, but no helmet, as she brandished the blade, swishing it from side to side as if checking its balance.

 **"** **Who are you?"** Zim growled, standing to face this new foe.

The woman brought the blade to bear on Zim, letting out a hollow chuckle as she did. "I feel a bit insulted by that. How could you not recognize your own mother?"

XXX

 **Yup, told you Mother would make another appearance. The attack has begun and the army is making good progress, though they lost several men against the G-Rank hunter's attack. And Zim's had a change of heart, no longer wanting to save as many people as possible, but destroy as many as he needs. I wonder if Mother will stand a better chance against Zim than the Chancellor did… and I wonder where the rest of the G-Ranks are? All that and more, next time!**


	19. Chapter 19

Chapter 19 - Lebensmüde:

Author's Note:

 **Alright, here we go again. This is going to be the second to last real chapter, as there is going to be an epilogue too. Anyways, Mother has caught Zim, I wonder if she'll be able to beat him? Let's find out, please enjoy! Oh, and before I forget, there's a graphic violence warning coming up. It's not** ** _that_** **bad… just… prepare yourselves.**

XXX

 _Lebensmüde: Life tired, exhausted with living._

 **"** **Mother?"** Zim said carefully, not dropping out of his stance. He had come to believe that his parents were dead during his childhood in Moga. Why was she just now contacting him? Shouldn't he have run into her sooner if she really worked for the guild?

"That's right," she said with a soft smile, planting the tip of the God Slaying sword into the ground. _Is she not going to fight me?_ he wondered.

 **"** **I… don't understand,"** Zim growled, placing his hand on his head and shaking it slowly. **"Where have you been? Why have I been lead to believe you were dead?"**

"You have to understand, I did not expect you to live for more than a few years… to see you here and now… healthy, strong," she chuckled softly, "It really makes me regret what I did."

 **"** **What did you do to me?"** Zim asked, finally dropping out of his aggressive stance. If she wanted to talk, then he would oblige her. But… if she tried to stand in his way, he would not hesitate to destroy her. Mother or not.

"I abandoned you in Moga," she said stiffly. His red eyes narrowed and a growl escaped his lips as she continued, "My homeland. I had thought you were a failure… the genes just weren't matching up. I couldn't get the traits I wanted, even after years of research… I thought for sure you were going to die."

She paused for a moment to see if he was going to say anything. He remained silent, fuming and seething mere meters away from her. "I would've killed you myself… but I just couldn't bring myself to do it," she whispered, bowing her head.

Still, he did not comment, choosing to growl angrily instead. She raised her head to look him in the eyes, but he avoided her gaze. She let out a disappointed sigh, "I understand that you're mad at me… but I want to put the past behind us. There's still so much that can be done! I've heard your exploits, that you managed to contract the frenzy, go apex, make G-Rank, and even slay a White Fatalis!"

 **"** **If you had heard of me… why didn't you make contact until now?"** Zim snarled, doing his best not to outright attack his mother. She still had questions to answer.

"I only found out a few weeks ago when Isa met you in the library. She managed to figure out it was you… how, I'll never know," she chuckled, shaking her head. "She said you named yourself Zim. A dreadful name, really… though now I cannot fathom calling you anything but."

 **"** **Isa is dead, after literally stabbing me in the back!"** Zim roared, clenching his fist.

Mother took a deep breath, "Yes, I heard the explosion. It was connected to her heartbeat, when her heart stopped beating… it would detonate. I told her to remain undercover, not to do anything drastic! But she only sought to prove herself to me, pathetic, isn't it?" she chuckled. Zim's scowl only deepened from her words.

"She was a lost cause as well, I'm afraid. I knew she would end up doing something stupid one day. Did she at least test those new Wystones? Did they work?" Mother sighed, but there was still a small sparkle in her eyes as she asked Zim about Isa's sword going through his back.

 **"** **Yeah, they worked all right,"** Zim snarled, eyes narrowing. **"Was Isa my sister?"** he growled, suddenly worried that he had watched his own sibling die before his eyes… without ever knowing she was such.

Mother raised an eyebrow before saying, "Heavens no! You are the only child I have brought forth into this world. Isa was adopted, just Like Ruby was."

 **"** **Ruby?"** Zim asked, caught off guard.

"She didn't tell you? I brought Ruby in when she was young and let her stay under the condition she would be my test subject. And she's quite impressive with that bow, don't you think? How _is_ she doing, if I may ask?" Mother grinned, intrigued of how her former child was surviving.

 **"** **She's helping me lead the attack on the guild,"** Zim said.

"So she's turned traitor too, huh? I guess I'll have to discipline her when I'm through with you," Mother said, her entire demeanor changing drastically. She noticed him reenter his aggressive stance, so she pulled the God Slaying sword out of the ground, brandishing it again. "Now that we've gotten down to business, why don't you just surrender?"

 **"** **Never,"** Zim snarled, lowering himself even further to the ground, preparing to pounce on his mother, and tear her limb from limb. No mercy.

She shook her head, "Pity. I still don't really want to kill you…" She moved quickly, almost too quickly for the apex human, crossing the distance between them in an instant and slashing at him. He jumped backwards, just barely managing to avoid the slash.

She pursued him, poking and stabbing as he tried to outmaneuver her. But she kept her defense tight, warding off his strikes as he circled her, and slashing at him when she got the chance. The God Slaying sword cut right through his outer shell, leaving red gashes where the blade passed through him. He disengaged from her, touching his wound lightly. It bled profusely, but it was a shallow cut on his arm.

He roared and charged back in, aiming for her face with a strong punch. She blocked with the flat side of her sword, halting his attack. She kicked at his vulnerable legs, throwing him off balance, and slashing at him again. This time, she cut across his chest, blood pouring from the wound.

He backed away from her again, breathing heavily. She was fast, faster than he was and nearly as strong. He struck another pose, this time more defensive than offensive, and she straightened her back, pointing her sword dismissively to the ground. She had a look of intense boredom on her face, contrast to his own look of concentration. "Is this all there is to the _apex human?_ The monster that could fight three dragons at once, slay a hundred men without breaking a sweat, and weapons bounce right off him!"

He growled in anger as she sighed once more, "Don't tell me that… after all of this… you're just a human?" That taunt cut him to the bone. What was he? Was he just human? Was he a monster? Was he both? Was he just lucky when contracting the frenzy virus?

He glared at her, **"Why don't** ** _you_** **tell me what I am?"** He cracked his neck and lowered himself again, this time waiting for her to strike first.

"You're even more of a failure than I had thought. I had spent _years_ of research trying to find the right monster that could breed with humans. I sacrificed the lives of hundreds of slave women to find the answer! And when I did… **I** carried the burden of becoming the mother to a monster," she explained, jamming her sword into the ground once more and crossing her now freed arms.

"But when you were born… you weren't half the monster you were supposed to be. Only a third, maybe forty percent if memory serves correctly. And you weren't stable either, so I abandoned _you_ and I abandoned the _project_. That's all you ever were, Zim… just another research project," she said stiffly, almost as if not believing her own words.

 _I am half monster,_ the thought echoed throughout Zim. He was supposed to be half monster, at least. **"Where is my father?"** Zim growled, knowing full well that his father was a monster, likely locked up somewhere.

Mother picked up her sword and charged at Zim, hacking and slashing at him once more. He did his best to dodge her ferocious and accurate strikes, trying to strike back when he could. But he only received a long cut on his arm when he tried to counter attack. He was outmatched. "Your father is dead, I killed him after what I let him do to me," she explained, kicking him away.

He tumbled and struggled to his feet just in time to roll away from another savage thrust of her sword. She followed him, continuing to slash at him, but he managed to evade each slash, though his counters were still ineffective. **"What species was he?"** Zim hissed as the blade nicked his ear, but he was otherwise unharmed.

Mother pulled back in just the slightest, her eyes going glassy for just a moment. "He was a Rajang," she said softly. Yet another shift in demeanor, but this one Zim capitalized on. He struck her hard in the chest plate while she was distracted, sending her flying across the room. She landed with a loud clang, rolling onto her back after she hit the floor, gasping for air. She had dropped her guard for less than a second, but a second was all Zim needed.

And, yet, as Zim approached her, she rolled over to her stomach, coughing up blood and groaning, she pushed herself up and onto her feet. Zim growled and dropped into yet another defensive stance, hoping he would get another free hit like that. He had managed to dent her chest piece, hopefully slowing her down some.

"You know… when you're down on your knees in surrender, I'm going to kill the rest of them. Ruby, Malakai, those Elder Dragons you foolishly thought could make a difference against the God Slaying sword," Mother hissed as she too struck a pose, blade pointing at Zim.

Zim didn't react to her threat. Either he was still confident in his ability to beat her, or he was confident in the weapon Ruby carried to counter the God Slaying sword. Her lack of knowledge of the weapon made it clear that they still had a chance to win. Her eyes narrowed, searching for a weakness, some way to get him to drop his guard. All she needed was a split second to win, just as he did.

A vicious smirk suddenly spread across her face as she said, "I noticed you in the darkness with that Fatalis. The one you were supposed to slay and ended up killing her… brother, I presume, yes? Why would she be so friendly towards you, I wonder?"

Zim's eyebrows bunched together in confusion until she continued, "I saw how possessive she was of you, typical of a dragon and her chosen. Tell me Zim, have you lost something recently? Something that you can never get back? No, don't respond… I already know she has taken that from you, much like that Rajang took from me."

He growled something unintelligent, causing her smirk to widen, "I think I'll keep her alive, just to lord over you. She'll suffer every moment you don't obey. And who knows? Maybe she'll end up being _useful_ to me as well…"

He let out a roar in anger, _how dare she threaten Fuun!_ He leapt at her hoping to catch her off guard with his savagery, but she was well prepared. She jumped and twisted in the air, gathering momentum for a decapitating blow. He ducked, dodging the lethal strike, and prepared to counter. Only, she dropped the God Slaying sword from her right hand into her left, seamlessly transitioning to a different strike, one he had no time to dodge. She rent him from shoulder to hip before landing on one foot.

He let out a gasp of pain before she drove the blade deep into his thigh. He dropped to his knees with a cry of anguish. He had lost. She wrenched the blade from his flesh and flicked the blood that marred the golden sheen from the blade. "On second thought, I'll personally bring you her head when I'm through with her. Friends… lovers… family… are a weakness… why don't you sit here and think about what you've done?" And with that… she left him writhing on the floor in agony.

XXX

The army swept through the city streets of Dundorma, slaughtering those who resisted, apprehending those who surrendered. Very few actually surrendered, but those who did had dropped to the ground the moment the army came into view. She figured it had something to do with the Elder Dragons leading the charge.

But many made an attempt to fight, all with little success. Except for the three G-Ranks that had been overwhelmed only a few minutes ago, no G-Ranks had been spotted. The attack was going quite well, they had only lost a few dozen soldiers to the earlier attacks. The force was still going strong and moral was high, _they could win this!_

They marched through the city unabated all the way to the steps of the Great Hall. It was the last fortress the guild had left in the city of Dundorma. She saw the dead bodies littering the steps and knew that Zim had already been here. He had likely already killed the Chancellor and the Great Elder, perhaps the guildmaster too if he could find him. All they had to do was meet him inside.

The army began their ascent of the steps, Ruby was in the middle of the mass of soldiers next to Frost. She was still recovering from the poisoned knives, but her wind barrier was still working. Malakai led the army at the front, Agni next to him. Angel brought up the rear and Fuun was circling above them in the sky.

Frost suddenly stopped beside her, prompting her to stop as well, just before she ran right into the back of the soldier in front of her. "What's going on?" she asked, echoing the same sentiment from others as their voices began to raise, trying to figure out what was happening.

The soldier turned around with a finger on his lip, loudly shushing her and everyone behind her, "Be quiet, Malakai is talking to someone." She gave him a deadpanned stare as he slowly came to the realization that he was talking to a superior officer. He chuckled sheepishly, "Sorry…"

She rolled her eyes and shoved passed him. If Malakai was talking to someone, it was probably Zim. Which meant he had already won. The city was theirs! _So, then, why is no one celebrating?_ she wondered as she fought her way through the crowd. Finally pushing through the mass of soldiers, she stood next to Malakai and glanced up towards the door to the Great Hall.

The door had been blasted open, splinters were the only things left hanging on the massive hinges, but that was not why Malakai stopped. Instead of Zim greeted them, they were met by the glare of Elm and five other lower ranked G-Rank hunters. Elm had his arms crossed, but the other five had their weapons already drawn.

She smirked, when she still considered herself a hunter, she was G-Rank six, Elm was eight, and Alexander was four. "What are you doing here, Elm? You don't really think you and your pathetic band can truly stand against us, do you?" Ruby taunted. In her eyes, it was already over.

Elm shook his head and sighed before pointing behind them, "You're surrounded, Ruby. Give up." Ruby turned and peered over the crowd to see that a dozen other hunters, G-Ranks, blocked the bottom of the staircase. The army was trapped on the stairs.

Ruby let out a fierce growl as she approached Elm, who was still staring at them smugly, believing he had the upper hand. _"Never,"_ she hissed with all the malice she could gather. She had decided that he was to die by her hand. For all he had done, abandoning her and then insulting her strength.

 _Progress to Ruby's explosion: 80%_

Ruby cocked her fist back and let it fly towards Elm's face, his expression changing to surprise. He managed to put up his guard in time for her to smash into his arms, still sending him flying backwards. That was the cue for the fighting to break out once again. Angel turned to the G-Ranks behind her and blasted them with a fireball, scattering those not completely incinerated by her fire.

She then charged towards one of the fleeing G-Ranks, goring him with her skypiercers as the rest of the army flooded after her, trying to overwhelm the remaining G-Ranks. The G-Ranks blocking the door also rushed into combat, but were met by the fury of Agni's fire. But one of the hunters managed to pass Agni and head straight towards Ruby, who was rounding on Elm.

She turned just in time to see the threat to her side, but was not fast enough to defend herself. Before the strike could land, however, Malakai leapt into the fray, saving her life and beating off the G-Rank. Elm stumbled to his feet and drew his greatsword, preparing to fight Ruby head-on. She smirked at him and rushed to meet his blade, not bothering to draw a weapon. She no longer needed it.

The greatsword was a heavy weapon and Elm was burdened by heavy gold Rathian armor, Ruby was unburdened by a weapon and only wore light ranged armor. She easily rolled under a sweeping strike and got on his side, punching him in the leg. He yelped in surprise, dropping to one knee in pain. She stood quickly and elbowed him as hard as she could in the face, knocking his gilded helmet right off his head. The helmet bounced down the steps to the Great Hall as she grabbed him by the neck, picking him up off the ground.

Malakai was easily fending off his opponent's flimsy strikes, parrying and countering with such force that his opponent lost his footing. The hunter fell on his back, only to be met by Malakai's dual blades being driven directly into his chest, slicing him open like a piece of meat. He took a quick glance at Ruby to make sure she was faring well, his face placid, a stark contrast to her own expression. While she took great pleasure in slaughtering her foes, Malakai was taking no joy from this experience, only fighting because he had no choice.

Seeing that Ruby was currently strangling the life out of Elm, he turned to help Agni with the other three G-Ranks, easily turning the tide against the hunters. The army had finished off those blocking their escape route, Angel and Frost doing the majority of the work, and had regrouped at the bottom of the stairs. Fuun was still circling above, but at a lower altitude than before, clearly preparing to land once the rest of the hunters were dead.

Ruby increased pressure on her captive's neck, grinning at his gasp for air. _"Well, Elm? Are you going to surrender?"_ Ruby hissed. Elm's hands covered her own, trying to force her to let go, but only succeeded at making her grip tighten even further.

"N-n-nev-v-er," he croaked. She growled something unintelligible before throwing him onto the ground. He went limp upon impact; she could hear his sharp intake of breath. He trembled on the ground before turning over to his back, still breathing heavily, making no effort to get up off the floor.

"I'll never surrender to you, not now, not ever," Elm said, still breathless. He lied on his back, staring up at her as she hovered over him, fist raise, prepared to smash his face in.

"Zim is already inside, he's likely already killed the Chancellor and the Great Elder. It's over, Elm," Ruby sighed, lowering her fist. She figured he at least knew where the guildmaster was, which made him useful.

Elm finally struggled to his feet, wobbling slightly but not falling over. "Perhaps… but the guildmaster is somewhere safe, with the remainder of the G-Ranks protecting him. It doesn't matter if you destroy Dundorma… the guild will _persist_ ," he growled.

Ruby narrowed her eyes at the man, he was delusional. She heard the sounds of screaming before they were silenced forever. Malakai and Agni had finished dealing with the remaining G-Ranks. The human came to stand next to her, wondering why she had yet to kill Elm.

Before any of them could react, a golden blade pierced through Elm's chest. He let out a loud cry of agony and surprise before the blade was sliced through his entire body, nearly cleaving him in half. A woman wearing black and gold armor stepped over his corpse, "Well said, my child." She flicked the blade, sending droplets of blood splattering against the ground.

Ruby's eyes narrowed and seemed to glow as she growled, _"Mother."_ The woman with white hair only smirked and brought her blade to bear on Ruby.

 _Progress to Ruby's explosion: 85%_

XXX

Zim groaned as he staggered to his feet. He let out long, deep breaths as he ignored the pain. The God Slaying sword had cut through him like butter, and prevented him from healing at his accelerated rate. He wondered if these wounds would be permanent. _No… that doesn't make sense. She must have a way to fix me, if she wants to keep me alive,_ he thought to himself.

He dropped to the floor once more, still breathing heavily. _My mother is alive,_ the thought echoed through him. When he became a hunter, he had never once thought of his parents. He assumed they had been dead, so he never doted on them. _Well, my father is dead._ That was another thought. It had been a thought on his mind for some time, and now he knew the truth. He _was_ part monster.

Maybe not half like Mother intended, but enough to be infected with the frenzy virus, and enough to go apex. Rajang was an interesting choice, however. He wondered if he had the ability to harness electricity like the Elder Dragon-level monster. He assumed that would be something Mother wished to test.

 _I'm a monster, goddamn it! There has to be some way to heal these wounds,_ he hissed quietly to himself. He forced himself back up onto his feet, immediately regretting that action. He dropped to his knees as a powerful headache set in. He growled and struggled through it, doing his best to ignore the pounding on his skull.

He turned his head when he heard soft whimpers. It was the Chancellor; he was still alive and lying against the pillar Zim had left him against. He too was covered in blood and breathing heavy. Zim grinned when he thought of a plan to get his healing back on track. **"What would a monster do?"** he wondered, rhetorically, out loud.

He knew exactly what a monster would do in this situation. When their stamina was waning and their healing factor starting to drop… a monster would do one of two things. Sleep… or eat. Grimacing at the idea, but deciding that it needed to be done, he stood again and hobbled over to the prone form of the Chancellor.

The Chancellor barely had the strength to look up at him as he dropped to his knees, barely hovering over the slumped over form of the man. The Chancellor stared into Zim's hollow eyes and chuckled, "She got you, didn't she? But she didn't kill you… which means she's not done with you. God have mercy on your soul when she comes back."

Zim only stared blankly at him, swallowing hard, and baring his teeth. The man gave him a strange look, "What are you doing?" he asked after a few moments of Zim just kneeling and staring at him. Like he was just a piece of meat.

 **"** **Ending this,"** Zim growled and descended upon the man, ignoring his screams. He bit into his neck harshly, savoring the iron taste of blood in his mouth as the screams became mere gurgles. He tore a small chunk free, the Chancellor still alive, though that was not his concern.

He felt the power once more blast through him as his pupils narrowed to slits. The multiple lacerations stopped bleeding and he could feel the healing process start once more. Turning back to the still alive man, he dove back in, this time with tearing free more flesh than before. Eventually, the Chancellor's minor struggles halted as he bled out, Zim still devouring him.

After a few more bites after that moment, Zim stopped, blood dripping down his maw. The God Slaying sword had stabbed into his bone, but the flesh had helped kick start the healing process once more. He stood, no longer wobbling, and tested out his leg. It no longer hurt to stand, though there was still a hole in his thigh. None of his wounds had closed yet, but they had stopped bleeding.

He could walk and he was starting to heal again, though only at a human rate. He could keep fighting. But despair set in, how was he to beat Mother? He just had to hope that Ruby's weapon would be able to stop the God Slaying sword. Because if Mother lost that weapon… she would not be able to stop him. And he would devour her too once that happened.

XXX

 **Well that was unexpected. I mean… you wouldn't have seen that coming if I didn't put a warning at the top. I almost didn't do that, by the way. But it was advised to me to do so, so I did. So yeah, Zim is defeated by Mother and is reduced to cannibalism. Ruby and the others meet her and are now in a spot of trouble… unless the weapon Ruby has can counter the God Slaying sword. But, whether it will or won't has yet to be seen. So stay tuned for the final chapter to find out!**


	20. Chapter 20

Chapter 20 - Weltschmerz:

Author's Note:

 **Fitting that the final chapter is chapter 20. A nice even number (though there will be an epilogue). It's also fitting that our final chapter is the title of this story. Anyways… we just have a few things to tie up in a neat little bow before this story ends. Will Zim prevail and defeat Mother? Or will he fall short? Please, enjoy!**

XXX

 _Weltschmerz: Despair caused by the state of the world._

"There's my little runaway," Mother smiled savagely. Ruby's eyes widened, she looked the same. She hadn't aged a day. Same white hair, same black and gold armor. Ruby growled and gripped the weapon Dr. Steele had given her, though she did not draw the blade.

"Where's Zim?" Ruby snarled, lowering herself in an offensive stance. Though she still did not draw her weapon. She noticed the dent in her opponent's armor, however, and assumed that Zim had done that. If it came down to a fight, hopefully that damage would slow her down enough to make a difference.

"Currently indisposed," Mother smirked, swishing the God Slaying sword back and forth. Malakai narrowed his eyes and pointed his dual blades at her. Her smirk only widened, however, as she said, "Now… shall we _begin?_ "

Agni let out a roar as fire spouted from his jaws, intent on burning Mother alive. Ruby had no idea what type of armor she was wearing, but it wouldn't be able to resist a point blank blast from a Teostra's flamethrower for very long. At least, that would've been the case if Mother didn't move out of the way, dodging the blast of flame and leaping at the red dragon. Agni only had time to snarl in surprise before his head was cleaved in twain, killing him immediately.

A roar forced its way out Ruby's throat as she charged at Mother, just as Agni's dead body collapsed to the ground. She drew the weapon in midair, a downward strike with all her raw power behind it. Mother turned and met the attack head-on, blocking it with the edge of her blade. Malakai rushed in next, trying to capitalize on Ruby's distraction. Mother moved quickly, however, throwing Ruby off her and turning to meet Malakai, sparks flying when their weapons collided.

Malakai went into a complex sequence of strikes and parries as Mother expertly deflected his attack, never giving up the offensive. They danced around each other, two experts of the blade, neither gaining advantage over the other. Until Mother saw Ruby coming at her out of the corner of her eye. Noticing that she was now at a disadvantage, she changed strategies.

She fainted to the right, Malakai falling for the move, and ducked into his guard, elbowing him in the chest and throwing him out of his stance. She turned away from him, meeting Ruby's blade and tried the same dance she had with Malakai. She easily outmaneuvered the inexperienced girl, slicing into her back and sides, before turning back to Malakai. Ruby cried out in pain, she wasn't fast enough to see Mother's movements, and collapsed to her knees.

Mother reengaged with Malakai, knocking aside his slashing attacks and tried to step into his guard once more. He twirled out of the way, not wanting to be elbowed or worse, and thrust forward, hoping to impale her on his shorter blades. Her blade appeared below his own, catching them, and moving them to the side in a single fluid motion. She stepped forward, meeting his advance with her own as he tried to free his weapons from her pin, and kneed him in the stomach. He doubled over and she took advantage by kicking him down the stairs.

He tumbled down the stairs, losing his weapons as he did, and fell into a heap at the bottom of the staircase, his weapons landing with a clinking sound. Mother smirked once again and turned on Ruby, now it was one-on-one. And Ruby was at an immense disadvantage. But she gripped her blade hard despite that, entering a defensive stance.

Mother responded with a simple En Garde stance, prompting Ruby to attack first. She lashed out with a vicious thrust, but Mother easily sidestepped it and returned the attack tenfold. A new laceration presented itself on Ruby's hip, bleeding profusely. "Come now, my child, you can't truly believe you can best me with the blade. You were always terrible, and you haven't improved in the slightest," Mother hissed.

 _Progress to Ruby's explosion: 90%_

Ruby let out a feral roar and lunged at Mother, this time with her entire body. The idea was simple, the blades collided with a display of sparks, but Ruby kept coming. She slipped into her opponent's stance, shoving into Mother and knocking her off her feet. Mother hit the ground with a loud grunt and immediately challenged Ruby's superior position by slashing at her legs.

Ruby blocked the slash, planting her blade in the ground, and curled her hand into a fist. She threw the punch straight at Mother's face, hoping to knock her unconscious, or at least cause heavy head trauma. But Mother saw the attack coming and caught Ruby's fist with her own hand.

The two held the position for nearly a minute, just pushing against each other, trying to overpower the other. But they were equally matched in raw power, signs of exertion present on both of their faces. Eventually, Mother growled and kicked at Ruby's legs, throwing her off balance. With her legs no longer under her, Mother had an easy time throwing her down on the ground.

Mother jumped to her feet, grabbing her sword as she did, Ruby following that action. She was just in time to block a thrust from Mother, thankful that she had not dropped the weapon when Mother tossed her to the ground. The two traded blows once more, Ruby maintaining her marginal upper hand. She realized one thing during that trade, however. Mother was slowing down.

Whether it was being thrown to the ground, the extended exertion on her part, or the hit she obviously took from Zim, Ruby could not tell which. But she had the upper hand and began to put pressure on Mother's weakened guard. Mother danced around her once again, trying to change the tide of battle, but Ruby was more than prepared.

She rolled forward, not willing to be punished for letting her opponent behind her, being careful not to roll down the steps. She whirled around in time to lock blades with Mother, who was beginning to sweat. "Losing your touch, old woman?" Ruby taunted, trying to throw Mother off.

Mother only snorted, "Perhaps, child. But I am more ancient than you can possibly imagine, and you have yet to see what I can really do." She gritted her teeth as she broke the lock between the blades and immediately went on the offensive. She sped up instead of slowed down, quickly gaining momentum and beating down Ruby's guard.

The blows came raining down at a surprising pace, left and right, up and down, and everywhere in between. Mother spun between her slashes, gathering momentum for more powerful strokes and switched directions randomly in her sequences, Ruby's slower reaction speed couldn't keep up with the suddenly revitalized Mother.

She became aware of how heavy her weapon was in her hands and the sweat that made gripping the handle difficult. She could feel her muscles begin to burn and the throbbing of her wounds as they protested her movements. The ache set in deep within her head as dark splotches began to descend on her vision, she had never fought for this long before. And even the frenzy was beginning to fail her.

With a roar, Ruby desperately slashed at Mother, a wild and unpredictable move, but she missed nonetheless. Mother _backflipped_ , dodging the attack, and rushed forward in a full body slam. She crashed into the exhausted Ruby, throwing her down the steps to the Great Hall as she had Malakai. Mother let out a deep breath as she watched the child tumble down the stone steps and land in a heap next to Malakai, who was just beginning to right himself.

There was a dull thud as Ruby landed, sword still clutched tightly in her hands. She breathed out, the air knocked from her lungs from the impact. She gasped for air, finding it difficult for her to take in the vital oxygen, and struggled to her knees. She bent over, still breathing hard as she tried to clear her head, blood dripping from her mouth.

Malakai took one look at her and knew that they needed to buy her time. Ruby was the only chance they had at defeating this Mother character. "Give us some time," he hissed to his soldiers. They nodded and began to ascend the steps to intercept Mother as she descended towards them.

 _"_ _The weapon isn't working, Malakai, I don't think we're going to make it,"_ she hissed softly, still short of breath. Malakai shook his head, agreeing with her as he turned around to watch a dozen of his troops try and confront Mother.

Mother only laughed at the incoming troops. She easily broke through the first one's guard, slicing him completely in half, his longsword unable to contain the pure power of the God Slaying sword. The others fared no better as she parried and riposted easily breaking shields and shattering weapons. The troops' own weapons were nearly completely ineffective against Mother's tough, unidentifiable armor. They bounced off, dull ringing accompanying their fruitless attacks. The only two that would be able to damage her were Malakai and Ruby.

Mother leapt up a few steps, dodging a dangerous looking lance aimed at her head, it bouncing off her chest plate. She swung her blade around her body, decapitating the soldier, before swinging ever higher, catching yet another longsword with her own. She continued swinging in a circle, dragging her opponent's weapon with her, before lopping off his legs from the knee.

He collapsed to the ground in agony before she ended him by stabbing the God Slaying sword through his chest. Another soldier, seeing an opportunity, rushed at her with a sword and shield, hoping to attack her before she could remove the weapon from the dead chest of his ally. But she didn't bother with removing the weapon, instead she caught the blade with her gloved hands.

The man stumbled, confused by the action, but managed to put his shield up in time to block a vicious punch. But she wasn't through, she twisted his arm around as she spun behind him, various sinews breaking in his arm, before gripping his head and twisting it, snapping his neck effortlessly. She dropped him to the ground and grinned at the rest of the soldiers, challenging them to come after her.

Ruby and Malakai stood up off the ground, waving their troops back, as they brandished their weapons. Mother wrenched the golden sword from the chest of the dead soldier and restarted her descent of the stone steps. The setting sun cast her shadow across the steps, it only getting larger as she got closer to the ground. She brandished her sword, flicking blood from it, once she stepped off the steps to the Great Hall. "Who's next?" she hissed threateningly.

The soldiers took a few steps back, only for Fuun to come in landing behind them, trapping them between a rock and a hard place. They would not be running away from this fight. Angel only growled at Mother, but Frost rushed into battle, hoping to buy Ruby and Malakai that little bit of time they so desperately needed.

She rushed forward, wind barrier in place, and prepared to throw all her fury at Mother. Ruby and Malakai were only a few steps behind her, hoping that even if she fell, they would be able to catch Mother in a pincer movement. But Mother didn't even flinch, weathering the storm Frost summoned up, and easily renting her from chest to head.

There was that horrible shearing sound of metal being cut before Frost's blood emptied out onto the hard ground. She collapsed on her side, light rapidly fading from her eyes as Mother didn't even spare her a glance. She didn't have the time as she turned to meet Malakai's blades in with a parry.

She threw Malakai off her and turned in time to elbow Ruby in the chest before she could even swing her sword. They were coordinating better than before, and Mother noticed that. Malakai held his own well enough, but now he was protecting Ruby's weakness with his own ferocity. Mother couldn't get a word in edgewise as she deflected attack after attack.

She let out a growl of frustration as she stepped in between them so that Ruby was on her back. She knew that it was risky, but she was confident she could handle them now that they were separated. She kept spinning around and around, blade moving up and down to keep Ruby from hitting her blind side while parrying Malakai at the same time. She kept this up for several minutes, but Ruby eventually managed to nick her on the side, black blood pouring from her wound.

She snarled again and tried a different tactic. In the middle of one of her spins, she broke the separation between the two of them, to which Malakai immediately stepped closer towards Ruby. But Mother still had a trick up her sleeve, she caught Ruby's blade with her own and dragged it over to Malakai, who was unable to stop his attack. The two allies' blades collided, giving Mother a chance to kick Ruby away from Malakai. She flew through the air and landed near Angel, her blade finally loosing from her hands.

Malakai and Mother traded a few more times before she locked blades with him. "It's over," she hissed as she thrusted upwards, once to break their blades free, and once more hitting Malakai in the face, causing him to stumble backwards. She then thrust her blade into his chest, easily piercing his heart.

He let out a gasp of pain as blood began to leak from his mouth. His dual blades dropped to the ground as he collapsed to his knees, utterly defeated. Mother pulled the blade from his chest, whipping it around and turning to face Ruby. He collapsed onto his back, life fading from his form.

She twirled the God Slaying sword in her hands as she approached Ruby, now it was just one-on-one once more. Only, it would be if it weren't for the army that flung themselves into battle the moment their commander hit the ground. Mother was quickly put on the defensive as she tried to fight off the swarm.

Ruby and the Elder Dragons watched in fascination as she parried, thrust, riposte, and dodged all manner of attacks from all manner of weapons. She wasn't slowing down, in fact, she seemed as if she was speeding up. She was even more impressive than Ruby or Zim as they cut through wave after wave of thralls on the battlefield. She was completely at ease with being outnumbered, a tranquil look on her face as she sliced through yet another soldier. She was… unstoppable in her rampage.

At last, she cut down the thirtieth soldier and the others backed off, realizing that they were no match for her. She snorted at their cowardice and turned towards Ruby and the Elder Dragons. "Is that all? I was expecting something… more," she grinned as Angel snarled loudly.

 _"_ _You are nothing more than the scum of this Earth! You wouldn't even stand a chance if you weren't wielding that cursed blade,"_ Fuun growled, fire beginning to foam in her mouth. Their last hope was a concentrated blast from both standing Elder Dragons. Although they doubted it would stop Mother, it might slow her down enough that Ruby could engage her on equal footing.

Mother stared at Fuun for a moment before bursting out laughing. Her laugh was loud and cruel, echoing throughout the empty city. "I think not. I could kill you all just as easily with a regular blade… it would just take more time. Perhaps if you were to abandon your regeneration, I might not need such a weapon," she grinned.

Fuun and Angel reared back in surprise, _she could understand them_. They sent each other looks, trying to decipher the secret. _"You can understand us, ningen?"_ Fuun eventually asked.

"I know much about your ilk, and I have been studying you all for… centuries. The first thing I learned was how to understand you," Mother conceded. Ruby's eyes darkened as she processed Mother's words. _Centuries,_ the though reverberated through her.

But she rushed into battle nonetheless. Fuun let the fireball spew from her mouth at the same time Ruby leapt forward. The fireball would collide with Mother mere seconds before Ruby would reach her, it was their last chance to make a difference. Mother gave both Ruby and the fireball bored looks, pondering whether or not to actually react to the threats. If she could even call them such.

She decided to react anyways, swinging her sword upwards in a vertical slash, splitting the fireball in two, causing it to explode midair, before it could harm her. She turned quickly and swung downwards, colliding with Ruby's blade in a vicious strike. Ruby was forced to her knees from the sheer force of the blow. But she still tried to attack from the disadvantageous position.

Mother jumped backwards, dodging the slash, and then leapt forwards, slicing her from hip to shoulder. Mother let out a sigh as Ruby dropped her sword from the pain and fell face-first to the ground. She was finished, though not dead. Mother decided that she needed to keep one of them alive to threaten Zim with. Although the Fatalis was a likely candidate, she had already promised to bring her head to Zim, and she wasn't sure what the Alatreon's relationship to her son was, so Ruby would have to do.

She walked towards the remnants of the army slowly, letting terror sink in to its fullest. For each step she took, they took a collective step backwards. Only the Elder Dragons didn't run from her. Mother eventually stepped too close to Angel, who lashed out at her. Mother spun away from the biting attack and swung her sword, aiming to decapitate the dragon.

Angel reared back, the sword completely missing, as she turned and gave Mother a vicious tail whip. She rolled under the appendage and swung again as the Alatreon came in to bite her. The sword collided with the great skypiercers on top of Angel's head… but did not cut through the fearsome horns. Mother's eyes narrowed in confusion, then widening when Angel's mouth opened wide, fire spilling out.

Mother rolled away, sword still firmly in hand, dodging the fireball. She turned just in time to see Fuun charging at her, forcing her to roll away again. The Fatalis snapped into the space she had just left, but wasn't fast enough to turn and snap again. She ran around the black dragoness' side and slashed right through her tough side scales. She let out a yelp of pain as the sword cut her side deeply. She collapsed onto the ground, Mother quickly capitalizing.

Mother ran around her once more to get to her head, but was unable to strike the killing blow. Angel appeared once more, her ravaged wing covered in a sheet of ice, electricity bouncing between her horns. She swiped at Mother, energy pumping through her claws, knocking her away from the wounded Fatalis.

Mother growled as she righted herself, Angel not giving her time to attack. A blast of lightning came surging from Angel's mouth, too fast for Mother to dodge. But she managed to hold her sword up and attract the lightning to the conductor. Lightning sparked through the blade, quickly becoming too much for her to handle. Thinking quickly, she jammed the sword tip into the ground once more, grounding the blade and sending the electricity harmlessly into the Earth.

The two shared a glare, the world seemed to stop rotating as they stared each other down. Neither pouncing, neither flinching, neither backing down. But, as the sun sent a collage of orange and red hues across the sky, the two leapt at the other, praying that their strike would be the first… and the last. Mother swung her sword and Angel opened her jaws wide, her scales shifting back to their black color, and red and black lightning surrounded her form.

The dust cleared to see that Angel had the God Slaying sword in her maw, though Mother had not let go. The two were engaged in a deadly tug-of-war, the winner being the one to slay the loser. The two growled at each other, the lines between human and monster blurred and those few onlookers could hardly tell which was which.

 **Enough!**

The world froze once again as Mother turned to look behind her and Angel looked up to see Zim standing at the top of the stairs. His face was set in a tight line as he glared at Mother. The grip on her sword loosened as Angel let go and backed away. Zim began his descent from the Great Hall. **"Mother… look at all you have wrought. I know your weakness, now, Mother,"** he growled once he hit the bottom of the staircase.

She turned towards him, but did not point her sword at him, and narrowed her eyes, silently asking him to continue. **"You will not kill me. You… still… love… me,"** he finished.

"My weakness?" Mother echoed, confused. "You think _that_ to be my weakness?" she burst out laughing. "If you stand against me now, I won't hesitate to strike you to down! Look at all that _I_ have wrought? Look at what you have done! Look at all those you have slain! Look at what you have sent to _ruin!_ "

His fist tightened into a ball as he looked down at the floor. Loathing set in as he realized exactly what he had done. And he struggled to care. _Was that in itself more monstrous than killing all these people?_ he wondered briefly. "Zim!" a voice cut through his deprecation. He raised his head to see Ruby struggling to stand. "Don't listen to her… she has killed as many as you have, maybe more in all her years of living. She's just a hypocrite!"

" _Silence!_ " Mother growled out, but Ruby only flipped her off with the last of her strength, before dropping to the ground again. Mother grinned, seeing Ruby quieted, possibly for the last time. She advanced on Zim, intent on striking him down for good this time. She had clearly messed this all up, it was better to just start all over. A new hybrid, a new child would fix all of this.

Ruby looked up from her face down position to stare into Zim's determined red eyes. The weapon had not worked for her, clearly, but perhaps it would work for him. So, digging deep within herself, she managed to grasp the sword she had been given by Dr. Steele and _throw_ it as hard as she could.

The sword clanked against the ground next to Zim, causing Mother to pause in her step. He picked up the sword, swishing it back and forth, testing its weight. It weighted the exact same as the God Slaying sword did. A strange change came over Zim the moment he brought the sword to bear on Mother.

The darkness that surrounded him in his apex state began to expand and billow outwards, being absorbed into the sword. The wounds on his body immediately began to heal, a sizzling sound coming from the lacerations. Mother watched in confusion as Zim was returned to perfection, no mars on his body, not even a speck of blood was left on his skin. Zim looked at the sword in equal confusion as his mother, but quickly figured it out.

 **"** **Every action has an equal and opposite reaction,"** he mumbled as he looked down at Malakai, chest still rising, but only barely. He was not dead yet, miraculously. Thinking quickly, Zim jammed the blade into Malakai's wound. The flesh around the bloody scar immediately began to repair itself as the sword undid all that the God Slaying sword had done.

Malakai's eyes popped open and his sat up quickly, the blade being pulled from his flesh, not leaving even a scar behind. He looked around, eyes widening when he realized how close to death he had been. Mother glared at the blade, quickly coming to the same conclusion that Zim had.

 **"** **When that blasted sword was made, this one was as well. The Anti-sword, complete opposite to your own,"** Zim growled. He doubted that the sword could reverse death, but it would be able to save those that were close to dying. He began to walk over to Ruby, intent on healing her as well, but Mother blocked his path.

Zim's eyes narrowed and held his ground as Mother advanced on him. She stopped and glared at him when she was but a foot away from him. As one, they raised their blades, mirror to each other, and slashed at each other with all their might. The moment the blades connected… they exploded, throwing both combatants backwards in smoking piles with a resounding **_BOOM!_**

 _Made together, but separate._

 _The light of the God Slaying sword._

 _And the dark of the Anti-sword._

 _But combine them, and they are unmade._

XXX

 **And there you go, the final chapter! It's a bit of a cliffhanger, but the epilogue will be able to settle everything. I know this chapter was a bit short, and maybe a bit confusing, but hopefully you all could navigate the swamp of swordplay. The Anti-sword is obviously based on the idea of antimatter, though you all can see Newtons laws playing in a bit with what Zim said. So… now that the swords have been unmade, will Zim be able to prevail? And what of Ruby and Fuun who were not healed. They aren't dead… are they? Stay tuned to find out!**


	21. Chapter 21

Epilogue – Ende:

Author's Note:

 **Hopefully I don't have to translate that title. This is… the end. We left off with Mother and Zim both being launched backwards in smoking piles from the explosion caused by their swords colliding. So, did they survive? And if they did… who won? Please, enjoy!**

XXX

The loud boom echoed throughout the city, but the only two that were affected seemed to be Mother and Zim. They had been launched backwards, Zim towards Malakai and Mother towards the steps to the Great Hall. Malakai immediately rushed to assist Zim, who was sitting up, clutching his head.

Malakai offered his hand to Zim, who accepted the gesture and he was pulled up to his feet. Zim rubbed his head, although the apex state had protected him from the explosion and being launched nearly ten meters, his ears wouldn't stop ringing. Zim let out a breath, it was over. Without the God Slaying sword, Mother couldn't touch him.

Speaking of Mother, she too was righting herself. She sat up and struggled to her feet. Burns covered her face and scorch marks littered the front of her armor. She grimaced as she began to heal rapidly. The black and red marks on her face began to retract, skin growing back in their place, as her white hair began to grow back to its previous length. Once she was fully healed, she narrowed her amber eyes at Zim and Malakai, letting a hiss escape through clenched teeth.

Zim returned the glare as he cracked his neck, preparing to deal the death blow to Mother. But she did not attack like he thought she would. Instead, she began to unclasp her scorched armor. She started with her armored gloves, tossing them to the ground, before moving on to her blackened chest plate. She wore nothing underneath her chest plate, except a thin piece of cloth over her breasts.

Attached to that piece of cloth were two swords, which she unclasped from her back and twirled them menacingly. She was not through. Zim only chuckled, **"That cannot harm me. It's over, Mother."**

Mother only shook her head, "Nothing is ever hopeless, and you are not invincible." She reached down to her side and dug into a small brown pouch Zim had missed before. From the pouch, she drew a stone, which she rubbed on the edge of the dual blades. She stuffed the stone back into her pouch and struck a defensive stance. She was no longer the aggressor, not without the God Slaying sword.

"Zim…" Malakai trailed off as the apex human snarled at his mother. He charged at her, not knowing what she had rubbed on her weapons, and all Malakai could do was watch. Mother slashed at Zim's chest, managing to pierce his skin and draw his blood, but he didn't seem to care. He punished her with a vicious uppercut, slamming against her jaw and tossing her into the air.

She landed on her feet and struck at him again. He continued to make no effort blocking or dodging, despite her weapons doing damage to him. The lacerations didn't last long, as Zim's high speed regeneration would kick in mere moments after he received the wound, completely healing him until there wasn't even a scar to remember the wound by. Mother ground her teeth in frustration, continuing her assault, but was starting to slow down.

Zim stood almost mockingly still as she jammed her weapons into his heart. He only blinked at her, before wrenching them from her hands and tossing them far from her reach. He grasped one of her arms in his hand, and with a sharp twist, _snapped_ the appendage. She dropped to the ground, hissing in pain as she cradled her broken arm against her chest.

Zim only growled and grabbed her by the neck, lifting her in the air and off the ground. Mother could only choke in pain, grabbing Zim's arm with her good hand. He ignored her attempts to free herself as he gave her a good squeeze, causing her to cough and black blood to drip from her mouth. **"Is that it, Mother? Has regenerating taken that much out of you? It's time to give up!"**

Amber met red as Mother choked out, "I'd… rather d-d-ie!" Zim increased pressure with a growl and a glare that clearly threatened, _that can be arranged._ A grin split across her face as laughter spilled out of her mouth. Zim growled and tightened his grip again, causing her laughter to turn into choking spasms. "B-b-bomb…" she managed to sputter out.

Malakai stepped closer to Zim, slapping a hand to his shoulder, causing him to nearly drop Mother. But she remained held against her will in the air, though she was no longer being strangled to death. "I'm rigged to blow, just like Isa. Only _my_ bomb is bigger! Big enough to wipe out this entire city… _you included,_ " she hissed when she could speak freely again.

"Let's not lose our heads, Zim," Malakai warned, "Let's think this through rationally." Zim's eyes closed as he took a few deep breaths to calm down. The commander was right, he needed to clear his head. His eyes opened slowly and calmly, but he did not drop Mother.

 **"** **Your heart won't stop the moment I snap your neck, I could easily drag you to a cliff, kill you, and drop your corpse down the ravine before you detonated,"** Zim growled. Mother's eyes widened, she had not thought of that scenario. A grin split across Zim's features as her eyes closed seemingly in defeat.

But his eyes widened in surprise as hers popped open, determination blazing across those amber orbs like a wildfire. There was a loud _cracking_ sound as her arm twisted back into place. Zim didn't have time to react as she punched him as hard as she could. He dropped her as he stumbled backwards from the blow, despite being unharmed.

She jumped backwards, dodging Malakai's attempt to restrain her, and pulled a knife from her boot. But she didn't point it at Zim, rather at her own heart. Zim and Malakai froze as the blade hovered over the literal detonation switch. A smirk stretched across her face as they realized what would happen if she stabbed herself in the heart. Instant detonation, nothing they could do about it.

"Well, gentlemen, it seems we're at a crossroad. I don't wish to kill myself, and surely you all don't wish to die…" she trailed off, her meaning clear. She was going to run. She hadn't won, but at least she would live to fight another day.

Zim bared his teeth at her, wanting to just leap at her and pay the price. Despite what she had said, he doubted the explosion would be able to harm him. And, if he timed it right, he might be able to contain a majority of the blast with his body, thus saving the city and the remnants of his army. Having made up his mind, he let out a growl and bunched his muscles together, preparing to jump.

Malakai, having realized what Zim was doing, held out his hand, stopping him. He gave him a look, silently reaffirming his own orders. _Stay calm, keep a level head._ He stepped forward, slowly, but Mother immediately began to press the blade into her chest, black blood dripping from the small incision. Malakai held up his hands, freezing in place again. "You know… I've never heard of you before. And I'm high up in the guild's ranks, as the _real_ strongest hunter in the world, and yet… I've never heard of you," he said calmly.

She narrowed her eyes, recognizing what he was doing. He was stalling. But why? She didn't move the blade from her own heart, but answered him anyways, "I've always kept myself hidden except to those I take in and the guildmaster himself. He chooses who gets to know about me."

"Then who are you?" Malakai continued, tone even and composed.

"I am known as Mother. I am… was the head of Monster research in the guild," she hissed, pressing the blade even deeper into her chest. Less of a threat to them, more of a reminder to herself that she held all of the cards. She couldn't let classified information leak into enemy hands.

"Was?" Malakai asked carefully. Dr. Gloria Steele was the current head of monster research and headmistress of the Wycademy, that much he knew. Was Mother her predecessor? If so… why hadn't Gloria warned them about this… being?

Mother let out a laugh, "I can tell what you're thinking. _Why didn't good old Dr. Steele tell me about her?_ My protégé has no reason to tell you about me, as was a part of our agreement."

Malakai growled, she didn't answer the question. And she only made him more confused, and now Dr. Steele was back in the fire and there was nothing he could do to help her. "You don't work for the guild, do you?" he eventually sighed. Mother only shook her head a resounding no. "Then why fight for them?"

Mother brought her eyebrows closer together at those words. She had never considered that question. Why _was_ she here? It wasn't like she had any real ties to the guild. They left her alone so she could do research and experiments that they wouldn't allow under their supervision. They didn't bother her while she worked, and she went to them the moment she made a breakthrough, no matter how illegally she had obtained it. 'Twas how the God Slaying sword was made. She had postulated the anti-regeneration ability and designed the entire sword herself handing it off to a team of researchers to complete the design simply because she couldn't herself.

 _Why do I fight for them?_ the thought burrowed itself into her mind as she lifted the knife from her chest. The wound closed nearly instantly, the knife falling harmlessly against her side. She still gripped it tight, but no longer pointed it at anyone. "…I'm not sure. I guess… it is what I have always done," she said softly.

Zim's eyes widened, she was just like him. He had said the exact same thing to Fuun when he had met her. _Why do you rope yourself with the ningen?_ And he had not an appropriate answer. And neither did she. Malakai immediately leapt at the opportunity she had presented him with, "You have no reason to sacrifice yourself for their cause. If anything… you should've sided with us from the beginning."

"Should I have?" Mother asked carefully, never dropping her knife.

"If all you want is the ability to keep experimenting, then we would've let you do that. That's all Dr. Steele asked for," Malakai explained. She looked down at the ground, considered her options, and then dropped the knife. He smirked, she was willing to negotiate.

"I'm afraid that's not enough anymore. My experiments have slowed down considerably since the God Slaying sword had been made. There hasn't been anything that's… caught my eye as of late," she sighed wistfully, "Until now."

 _There's always a catch,_ Zim hissed to himself, but Malakai didn't look surprised. He had expected her to ask for something more. She did hold all the cards, after all. "I want my son back. Him being alive… has changed everything. I've been reinvigorated, there's new things to research, there's new tests to run! That's my only condition," she said firmly, crossing her arms.

 **"** **You abandoned me!"** Zim snarled, stepping out from behind Malakai. Mother didn't flinch, but she glanced down at the knife she had dropped. She wondered if she would be able to make it in time. Malakai looked back and forth between the two and quickly made the connection. **"Why would I let you come** ** _crawling_** **back to me?"**

"That is my only condition," Mother reaffirmed stubbornly.

 **"** **No, mother. You can only have me if you cooperate,"** Zim growled. Both Mother's and Malakai's eyebrows rose. **"Where is the guildmaster and the rest of the G-Ranks? This is only over once they're all dead."**

 _So that's it,_ Malakai realized. It had crossed his mind briefly that Zim might be unfit to become the new guildmaster for the new guild. He figured that Zim would give up the role to him, and Zim must've already realized that. So it didn't matter to him if he was stuffed away in a cage forever, as long as this was all over.

"I don't actually know where he is," Mother admitted, uncrossing her arms. She scratched the back of her neck, almost nervously. "And I figure that the rest of the G-Ranks are with him."

Zim snarled something that neither of them could understand, but eventually sighed, **"Then it looks like you're going to help us. I won't let you take** ** _anything_** **from me until the guildmaster and the rest of the G-Ranks are dead."**

Mother snorted but eventually nodded her head, "Very well, child. I shall help you hunt down the guildmaster and finish this… coup of yours. Then I will get what I want from you." Zim returned the nod and held out his hand, an informal way to seal the pact between them. She walked over to him, staring at his hand blankly.

In that short moment before she accepted the deal, doubt rose in her mind. She calculated every single possibility, even down to the probability Zim was going to stab her in the back. The risks were high, but she ground her teeth together and accepted them as fact. There was no way to completely eliminate risk. But she did not shake his hand.

Zim gave her a confused look when she closed her eyes and sighed, ignoring his outstretched hand. He very nearly pounced on her, killing her on the spot. He was still confident in his ability to contain the explosion, but he had not expected her to grab him and pull him close. His eyes widened when her form encompassed his own, arms wrapping around him, and holding him tight.

He only came up to her shoulder in height, so she had to lean down to whisper in his ear, _"You're right, you know. I still love you."_ And she pulled him even closer, shutting her eyes tightly. He only stared out into the distance, eyes wide. Mother had surrendered… his _mother_.

It finally came crashing down onto him. He had ignored it when he first met her, with both of them trying to tear the other's throat out. But he had a _mother_. Who loved him. And not like Fuun loved him, he was more of a possession of hers. Mother loved him in a way that could not bring herself to kill him. And even if he hated her for abandoning him… a twisted, monstrous part of him understood.

 _"_ _I hate to break up a loving family moment,"_ Angel's voice cut through the silence as she stepped forward. She had been silent and still since Zim showed up, concerned for her new favorite human. And she had never had a favorite human before, so it took her time to process that once she realized it. _"But Fuun and Ruby are still in critical condition."_

She almost wanted Zim to wrap his arms around her like he did his mother. To be loved… she wondered what that felt like. She chuckled, she would never know. She was the One Winged Angel, a devil that had fallen from heaven. She didn't deserve anyone.

Zim broke away from his mother and hesitated, trying to decide which of his friends he would check on first. Eventually, he decided that Fuun's wound was less severe than Ruby's. Mother rolled her eyes as she watched Zim kneel to check on the injured girl, turning her onto her back and revealing the multiple lacerations down her chest.

The wounds were bleeding heavily, but he could see the subtle rising and falling of her chest. She was still breathing; thus she was still alive. He looked over at Mother to see her walking over to Fuun, muttering to herself as she did. **"Well?"** he asked.

She looked back over at him, "I haven't the slightest what you mean, dear," she said as she turned back to Fuun's wound. It hadn't stopped bleeding, it was deep, and wasn't healing. It wasn't supposed to. Fuun was in a worse position than Ruby, several of her organs were likely damaged while Ruby had only suffered from blood loss.

 **"** **After you beat me, you sounded like you had a way to reverse the effects,"** Zim explained as held his hand against Ruby's neck, checking her pulse. It was fast, too fast. The heart was pumping blood too quickly, making her lose blood at an even faster pace.

"Well…" she took a deep breath, closing her eyes as she considered all the possibilities again. Eventually she opened them, rolling her eyes and sighing, she didn't have much of a choice. As much as she wanted Fuun and Ruby to die as punishment for Zim not just surrendering to her, it no longer served any purpose. She had gotten what she wanted… even if it might take some time to get it.

"It was only supposed to work for you," she mumbled as she approached Ruby. She paused in her step, however, once again thinking of a different possibility. "You, you, you, and you, find something to patch the Fatalis up," she said, pointing to a few of the remaining Knights. They gave each other brief looks, but complied nonetheless.

Mother kneeled down next to Zim with a loud sigh, "She'll probably be fine. I don't think I hit anything vital, though she may be out for a few days." She lifted Ruby's head up and opened her shut eyes, gazing into her glassy glare.

 **"** **How does this work? Is it a shot, or something?"** Zim asked, suddenly concerned as to why Mother was going through all this.

Mother placed Ruby's head back down on the ground before turning to Zim with a grin, "Oh, it's much more fun than that. You see… a while ago, I had become paranoid that _anyone_ , namely you, could pick up the God Slaying sword and just… well, you know. So I put the serum… _in my blood_."

Zim gave her a blank stare, to which she returned with an expectant gleam in her eye. She had forgotten what it was like to speak to people who had no idea what she was talking about. The last person she had collaborated with was Dr. Steele, but that was years ago. Eventually, she shook her head in disappointment, "Right then. The serum basically refortifies the gene that enhances high speed regeneration. Both fortunately and unfortunately, it requires a certain amount of… well, monster DNA in order to work."

Zim's head was spinning. DNA, serum, genes… he had never heard of any of this. And he was considered well-studied among hunters. "But it looks like Ruby has mutated to a certain degree, so I think this will work," she mumbled to herself as she held up her arm and presented it to Zim. "Bite," she ordered simply.

He was hesitant, but reluctantly bit down on her arm with his mouthful of fangs, drawing blood from the wound. She pulled her arm from his maw with a gasp and immediately held it up to Ruby's mouth. Zim realized what she was doing and helped Ruby lift her head to Mother's black blood could pour down her throat.

The wound was only open for a few moments, the bleeding quickly stopped. But whatever was in her blood started to work quickly, the openings in her skin started to seal up just like they had when Zim touched the Anti-sword. But her eyes did not open, in fact, she seemed to delve deeper into her slumber.

Zim growled in frustration, but Mother didn't seem concerned. She stood with a grunt and looked over to see the soldier's progress at patching up Fuun. They had broken into one of the nearby houses and stolen the sheets from the beds, tying them together and wrapping them around Fuun like a mock bandage. Angel had helped by lifting the unconscious Elder Dragon, the sheets instantly becoming soaked in blood.

She walked over to the dragon, mumbling to herself as she did. She checked the soldiers' job at covering the wound. She sighed, it was passable. **"You aren't going to do the same thing to Fuun?"** Zim said, not moving from Ruby's side.

"The Fatalis is fine, she's just being dramatic. We may need to stich the wound… but she'll be fine," Mother said, nodding to herself as she did. Zim hissed a curse to himself, he had just said Fuun's name and Mother had clearly heard him.

While Mother and Zim had been taking care of Ruby and Fuun, Malakai had been checking on each of the slain soldiers, praying to himself that at least a few of them were still alive. "Some of my Knights are still alive! What should we do?" Malakai called out, not looking away at the one still breathing Knight he had found.

Mother took a deep breath as she closed her eyes once more, trying to think of a way to deal with the injured soldiers. Malakai continued to check on his Knights as she thought, finding only a handful had survived. "I doubt the serum will work on them, but there should be a hospital a few blocks in that direction," Mother explained, pointing towards where she thought the hospital was.

Malakai only rolled his eyes and motioned for his soldiers to follow him, grabbing the barely alive Knights as they went. **"And what about you?"** Zim hissed. In his eyes, even if the serum wouldn't work, the Knights needed an experienced doctor to look after them.

"You and I are going home."

Zim snarled through bared fangs, **"We are not. We still have work to do!"**

"I need to put on something… well, more. And I need a good needle to sew the Fatalis' wound closed," she explained with a huff, more than a bit annoyed that he didn't trust her. He only rolled his eyes and motioned for her to lead the way.

Zim made to follow, but a loud groan gave him pause. And when he stopped moving, Mother stopped moving. They both turned to see Fuun's eyes flicker open, groaning again, _"What happened?"_ She lifted her head off the ground slowly, still blinking her crystalline eyes, as she tried to make sense of the muddied forms before her.

"You were struck by the God Slaying sword, and the cut is fairly deep. You passed out from the pain," Mother said just as Fuun's vision began to sharpen. She regarded the ancient human with bleary eyes before realization dawned on her. Mother was still alive.

 _"_ _Teme!"_ she hissed as she began to lift her whole body off the ground, beating her bat wings, and standing up on her hind legs. Fire flickered in her mouth as she prepared to launch a fireball at Mother.

"No, wait, don't try and…" Mother tried to say, but was too late. Immense pain rippled through Fuun's side, causing her to cry out. She collapsed back to the ground with another loud groan. She managed to make it onto all four, but blood was starting to leak out of the makeshift bandage, black spots descending on her vision.

Mother let out a sigh, she had clearly dealt with difficult patients before. "You stay here with her and get her up to speed, I'll go get the needle," she ordered, turning to walk away before Zim could complain. He didn't trust her alone, but he agreed that staying with Fuun was a higher priority.

So he remained by Fuun's side, watching her walk away. _"I'm missing something, aren't I?"_ she hissed softly, tongue flicking out. He had sat down on the hard ground, her resting her head next to him. Zim nodded absently before launching into what had happened to him. She was informed of his first confrontation with Mother, but he also told her of how Mother… sort of surrendered.

 _"_ _Is that really wise? Giving yourself up like that?"_ Fuun asked, concerned for Zim's well-being but mostly concerned about her claim over him. The way he phrased it sounded like Mother would lock him up in a cell, experimenting on him until her desire for knowledge was satisfied. To which, she would not stand for.

 **"** **Whatever I have to do to end this, I will do,"** Zim said softly, watching as Malakai came back from the hospital, flanked by the remaining soldiers, and picking up the next few that were still alive.

 _"_ _I don't want her to take you from me… I don't want anyone to take you from me,"_ Fuun growled.

Zim snorted, **"When it comes to that, I'll make sure the accommodations are fair, for all of us."** He knew that it would be difficult for her to let him go, he _had_ promised himself to her, but it was the only way to keep Mother on their side.

He noticed Malakai walking over to him, Ruby in his arms. He planned on taking her to the hospital as well, at least until she woke up. "Hey," he said, drawing Zim's attention from Fuun onto him, "We need to have a serious conversation once she gets back."

XXX

Fuun hissed in pain once more as Mother drove the large needle through her scales. "Stop writhing, you're making this more difficult than it needs to be," Mother admonished, halting again as Fuun flinched when the needle pierced her again.

 _"_ _I'm not used to having to close wounds like this… they usually just heal on their own,"_ Fuun growled as Mother tied off the thread. She had used some type of super thread she claimed was the lightest and strongest thread on the market. Zim had no idea what market she was talking about, but he had just nodded along.

Mother stepped back, wiping her hands against each other, and admired her work. The wound was sealed shut and would eventually start to heal. The God Slaying sword disrupted the ability to regenerate completely, but there were ways around that. As Zim discovered, monsters consuming flesh could restart the healing process, though not as effective as Mother's serum.

Angel had long since left. She had claimed that she had been away from her home for long enough, she needed to keep out intruders. Namely other Alatreons who believed they could take the Sacred Lands from her. Zim had bade her farewell, though the blazing black dragon did promise to make contact every once and awhile. And she had expected a visit from Zim himself occasionally.

"Now then, since that's over with, how about we have a little chat," Mother said, walking around to face Fuun directly. Zim and Malakai had disappeared into the Great Hall, but she didn't bother following. If they wanted her, they would ask for her.

 _"_ _I don't want to talk to you,"_ Fuun hissed, trying to walk away from her.

"Now don't stress yourself, dear, you'll open up the wound. And I won't be as willing to patch you up again," Mother glared, causing Fuun to freeze and turn back to her. She was trapped. "I think I deserve to have a word with you, I did seal that wound, didn't I?"

 _"_ _You were the one to put it in me in the first place!"_ Fuun growled. But she couldn't go anywhere, and it wasn't like she could just kill Mother. The human… if she even was human, was nearly as strong as Zim. And nearly as unbreakable.

"Now, now, let's not argue over semantics," Mother urged. "All I want to know is how you met my son." Fuun only growled and turned away again. If Mother wanted to know, she could go and ask Zim. Mother noted her hesitation, and decided to try a different approach. "Or would you rather talk about how you believe you have claim over him?"

She let out a growl, _"He gave himself to me. He is_ _mine_ _."_ Mother only smirked at Fuun's enraged expression, new ideas and thoughts ravaged her mind. _"And I will not let you take him from me!"_

Mother only narrowed her eyes, though the smirk didn't fall from her face, and laid her right hand on Fuun's jaws. Confusion sprung up in the emerald eyes, but realization quickly flooded them when Mother forced the Fatalis' head to the ground. Fuun struggled the best she could, but Mother was strong enough to keep her pinned with only a single arm. "Stop struggling, you'll only open your wounds if you struggle," Mother warned again, her voice calm and even, void of any sense of exertion on her part.

Fuun lied still, smoke billowing from her nostrils, and contempt filling her crystalline eyes. Mother's smirk vanished as she became completely serious, "I know that it's a habit for dragons to be possessive, but they also respect strength. And I, much like Zim, am stronger than you, _I don't need a weapon to end you_. When the time comes, _you will not interfere_."

The two remained in deadlock for a moment longer, glaring at each other before she let the dragon go. _"What do you want with him?"_ Fuun asked. She didn't move from her lying position, not wanting to seem threatening. Though Mother was correct that dragons respected strength, she knew that Zim would defend her to the ends of the Earth.

 _I am yours._

Mother only smirked, not answering the question. She watched as Fuun lifted her head to see Zim walking down the steps from the Great Hall, causing Mother to turn and greet them. Zim walked right past Mother to check on Fuun. He went around her side and looked at the stitching. "We were discussing our next course of action," Malakai said, noticing Mother's questioning glance.

"Alright then," Mother sighed, slightly peeved that they had not included her in their discussions. But she supposed they figured that she had been busy. "What's next?" She wanted to finish this as quickly as possible, the sooner this was over, the sooner she would have the right to research her son once again.

"We've decided to contact Dr. Steele and have her and whatever forces she can gather come here. We'll spend some time rounding up citizens that were spared, repairing Dundorma, and gathering up the few hunters that remain," Malakai explained.

Mother nodded in understanding, "What of the guild? You said you were going to replace it?" In truth, she could care less about what happened to the guild or what they were going to replace it with. As long as they didn't bother her studies, she wouldn't have any objections.

Malakai nodded in confirmation and began to tell of Zim's new system. It was remarkably similar to the guild she knew, Malakai would take the guildmaster position and Zim would be his right-hand man. They would regulate hunters differently, however. The huge number of hunters the guild had previously would be lowered significantly, only an elite few were actually needed to deal with the occasional threat.

And threats were classified differently, now. Instead of immediately sending hunters to kill monsters in the vicinity, the new guild would investigate claims of dangerous monster activity, usually with a Knight who could speak to the monsters. Those few situations where the monster was actually a threat and couldn't be communicated with would then be dealt with by hunters.

"You and Zim will be busy finding the old guildmaster and the rest of the G-Rank hunters, after we have Dundorma firmly under our control and the rest of the hunters rounded up. Once they are gone, we can start to reclaim guild territory, Val Harbor, Moga, Loc Lac, etcetera," Malakai finished.

"And after we find and eliminate the remaining threats to this new system, you'll leave me alone?" Mother asked, crossing her arms.

"If that's what you want, we will do so," he sighed. Mother nodded in agreement, shutting her eyes to think once more. Malakai only shook his head, wondering what it was she was calculating. A part of him wanted to believe that she was considering joining the new guild and working with Dr. Steele to advance their science and technology, but another part of him cynically screamed that she was likely calculating her odds of betraying all of them.

Malakai took a deep breath before letting out a long sigh. "What's your name?" he couldn't contain the outburst any longer. Both Ruby, Zim, and Isa only referred to her as Mother. _Surely she has a real name,_ he thought to himself as her eyes snapped open.

She regarded him with confusion, "What do you mean?" she asked.

"I mean, what is your real name?" Malakai said, rubbing the back of his neck. "It just doesn't feel right calling you Mother," he mumbled halfheartedly, tacking on that additional complaint.

She looked up, as if trying to recall what her real name was, but her eyebrows only drew closer together in bewilderment. "It's been nearly four centuries since anyone had called me anything but Mother. Except one…" she explained, "One had refused to call me anything but Captain."

"Yeah, that's not going to work either," Malakai muttered. "Your real name, what is it?" he said firmly.

She looked up at him, her amber eyes meeting his red ones, "I don't remember," she said seriously. Malakai gave her his best _don't bullshit me_ look, but she didn't crack. "It's never been a concern of mine! I just let them call me whatever they want. They deemed me mother, thus I became Mother," she hissed.

 **"** **Then we shall call you Shiro,"** Zim said, walking up behind her. Mother gave him a strange look, but he ignored it.

"You can just call me Mother, Zim, dear," she said with false sweetness. Zim only gave her a hard look, glaring into her soul as he did.

 **"** **You've lost the right to be called Mother. You are now Shiro, and that's that,"** Zim hissed.

"Seconded," Malakai said, backing up Zim's decision. He didn't care what they called her, just as long as it wasn't Mother.

 _"_ _It means white,"_ Fuun spoke up, managing to lift her head up off the ground, before it dropped right back down. She had suddenly become exhausted, she assumed it must be blood loss.

Mother, now deemed Shiro, threw her hands up into the air, "Fine, whatever. I guess it doesn't matter what you all call me." She watched as they all exchanged glances, but none of them commented again on the name.

"Alright, we've wasted enough time, we're going to the hospital to see what we can do about the surviving Knights," Malakai said. Mother nodded and followed him to the hospital, leaving just Zim and Fuun alone.

XXX

Time passed and the city of Dundorma was slowly repaired. The surviving citizens had immediately surrendered to the new guild, it only took a single look at Fuun for them to make up their minds. The few hunters that had survived only surrendered once Wolf, Rose, and Eve had done so. Then it was a domino effect after that.

The fires were put out first, Fuun being immensely helpful by carrying water in a large trough from a nearby lake. She was the one who started those fires, she figured it was the least she could do. The bodies were taken care of next. Concerns of what to do with the deceased floated around the city, but Zim coldly suggested that they burn them. To which, Shiro agreed. So, the corpses were tossed into a large hole, that Fuun had dug herself, and lit on fire.

There was only a single insurgency in the few weeks it took to rebuild the city. It was a group of citizens aided by a few hunters who believed that Fuun was in charge of the entire operation. That she was using Malakai and Zim as puppets to control the human race. The rebellion didn't get far, Zim personally stopping them before they reached the Great Hall, ripping them to shreds without mercy.

Fear set in even deeper after the incident. No one dared stand up against Zim, some even called him _The Enforcer_ as his job was to keep everyone in line. And they knew well enough that he could snap at the drop of a zenny, slaughtering everyone who dared defy him. So, they never tested his patience, and he was hardly ever forced to make a display of strength.

Malakai spent his time developing rules and regulations for the new guild and the hunters that would be joining it. Shiro had also helped him create a new curriculum that would be replacing the current one in every single academy in the old guild's territories the moment the new guild took them. At the moment, the only academy that had the new curriculum was the Wycademy.

Speaking of the Wycademy, Dr. Steele had made it to Dundorma just a few days after they had taken the city. She brought with her what little reinforcements she had, plus a large amount of her top engineers to help take hold of the city and immediately begin working towards repairs. She had spent her time helping Shiro heal the surviving soldiers.

Very few of the soldiers actually ended up surviving. Only three that had been struck with the God Slaying sword were still alive, and one of them was Ruby. Though, she was still asleep. Shiro had calculated that Ruby would be awaking today, however, which was why she and Dr. Steele were both waiting patiently by her bedside.

"Are you sure you ran the numbers right?" Dr. Steele asked for what felt like the millionth time.

Shiro only sighed and said, "You checked over them yourself, did I make a mistake?" Dr. Steele shook her head slowly, not taking her eyes off Ruby. "That's what I thought," Shiro hissed.

"I know… just what if she doesn't wake up, Captain," Gloria asked, concerned for Ruby's safety. In her eyes, it was her fault she was still in a coma. _She_ was the one who gave Ruby the Anti-sword, implanting false hopes in her head that she had the necessary amount of frenzy to activate its abilities. Those false hopes had driven Ruby to fight Shiro head-to-head, a huge mistake.

"That's not my name," Shiro hissed. She had taken quite well to the name, it rolled off the tongue fluidly and it sounded like she was younger than she actually was. She wasn't vain in any way; it was just nice not to be reminded that you were nearly four hundred years old.

"Right, sorry, I keep forgetting," Dr. Steele apologized before growing distant. She mumbled, "I just can't remember how long you let me call you that, it's what I'm used to, you know?"

Ruby let out a groan as she began to come to. Dr. Steele and Shiro immediately halted speaking and scooted to the edge of their seats to watch Ruby wake. Her eyes fluttered open at the sound of their voices going silent. She blankly regarded the two blobs that made up their shapes as she waited for her eyes to adjust to the brightness of the room.

"What happened?" she grumbled, rubbing her eyes. Eventually, the picture sharpened and she could make out the two shapes in the room with her. She was glad to see Dr. Steele, but slightly confused as it implied she was back at the Wycademy. But she was not expecting the white hair and amber eyes of Mother.

She nearly leapt out of the bed, eyes wide as she sat up, despite her pounding head. "What are you doing here?!" she snarled, pointing accusingly at Shiro. The two scientists shared a look as Ruby glared at them. _"Why isn't she chained up or, better yet, dead?"_ she hissed, directing her question towards Dr. Steele.

"If you would please leave the room, Captain," Dr. Steele said, gesturing towards the door. If her presence was stressing Ruby, Shiro would have to leave. And she left without so much as a huff, though she did send a glare at Dr. Steele for forgetting.

"I don't need to tell you that Mother is dangerous, do I? I surely hope Malakai at least told you that _she killed him!_ " Ruby growled. She had been conscious long enough to see Zim bring Malakai back from the brink of death. Although he was not technically dead, he was nearly there.

"He did _not_ fill me in on that little factoid, but I assure you, Shiro has stood down. She surrendered," she asserted. "She's harmless, and has been quite helpful, really."

Ruby shook her head, "That monster is _not_ harmless. It doesn't matter how much it seems like she's helping, she's just waiting until the right time to betray you all!"

Dr. Steele only gave her an unimpressed look, "There is no right moment, I ran the numbers. She's not going to betray us, there's no reason to. She'd have to detonate the bomb in her chest, which would kill her, by the way." Gloria crossed her arms, resolute in her statement.

Ruby only let out a sigh, laying back down on the bed. This made no sense, but if Zim wasn't complaining, then she had no right to. _Maybe I should at least see what he thinks about all of this, perhaps there's something I'm missing,_ she thought to herself. "Shiro?" she asked after an indefinite amount of time just thinking about the future.

"Zim named her that."

"And I don't blame him, I wouldn't want to call her Mother either in his position," she mumbled to herself. She waited a few minutes as the headache began to fade. Once it was just a dull throbbing in the back of her head, she sat up, and swiveled her legs off the bed.

"Where do you think you're going? You need to stay here for _at least_ another day," Dr. Steele urged. Ruby only ignored her, standing up from the bed. "Why is it always that patients ignore their doctors?" Gloria mumbled to herself as Ruby tried to walk.

She didn't stumble nor wobble in her step, she was perfectly fine. "My wounds have healed, I don't see any reason to stay here," she explained, taking further steps towards the door.

"Wait," was all Gloria said, halting Ruby's movements. She turned around to see the doctor reach into her lab coat and pull out a needle filled with blue liquid. The nulberry serum. "From what I've heard, you're still suffering from the mark. I think this will help."

Ruby thought for a moment, but shook her head a resounding no. "It's too late, Dr. Steele, I think. I'm too far gone," she all but whispered, stepping out of the room and shutting the door behind her.

She headed directly towards the Great Hall, figuring that Zim, or at least Malakai, would be stationed there. "Other direction," she heard Dr. Steele say from the doorway to the hospital. Ruby turned to see the woman giving her a bored look, clearly unimpressed by her ability to navigate the city.

Ruby nodded, mostly to herself, and turned around, heading towards the Great Hall. She walked through alleyways and passed scorched houses, the people giving her sinister looks as she walked. _What has life been like while I was out?_ she wondered. She couldn't have been out that long… they couldn't have messed this all up that quickly, right?

She halted when the clearing in front of the Great Hall came into view. She spotted Zim, but he wasn't alone. Fuun was with him. She could see the stitching down her side, and she could see the pain on her face every time she moved. Ruby stood just out of sight, trying to overhear what the two were saying to each other.

 **"** **Are you sure you have to go?"** Zim said softly, nearly too quiet for her to hear. Although Fuun was standing up on her hind legs, she bent over so her head was on level with his.

 _"_ _I am afraid that I must. I helped to the best of my abilities… but I am not needed anymore,"_ she said equally as hesitant as he was.

 **"** **That's not true…"** Zim started, but she interrupted him.

 _"_ _No, I'm afraid that I've been away from the Tower for too long. My wounds are great and everything hurts, being here is not helping me recover. I must go home, rest, recover, and heal from the losses we suffered in this fight,"_ she hissed, tongue flicking out.

Zim couldn't help but smirk, **"I thought that you were going to take me wherever you went. I thought I was yours."** Despite his teasing tone, Ruby could tell he was immensely disappointed.

Fuun snorted, _"You_ _ **are**_ _mine… but you belong here. With your kind, fixing what you promised you would. When I am healed, and when everything here is stable, I will come for you again."_

 **"** **Go rest and recover, I will be here when you wish to return. And we shall welcome you with open arms,"** Zim claimed.

 _"_ _I know you will,"_ Fuun nodded slowly. The two stared at each other for some time, his blood-red eyes into her emerald, crystalline ones. She brought her head closer to his, tongue flicking out again, this time swiping against his cheek. _"Farewell, Zim. Never forget who you belong to."_

Massive bat wing flapped, lifting her off the ground. She let out a loud roar, a reminder to all that she was only leaving for a time, she would be back. Zim echoed that roar, a promise to never forget her. And just like that, she was gone.

Zim let out a deep breath, the apex state finally leaving his form. He had not slept in all the weeks spent repairing Dundorma so that he could remain in his apex form and help to the best of his abilities. But he finally let go and returned to being just a normal human for the first time in weeks.

He vaguely noted Ruby walking up beside him. He didn't even acknowledge that she was now awake, his eyes never leaving Fuun's fleeting form. Ruby stood and watched with him until Fuun vanished. "She's gone," was his simple observation when it finally dawned on him. He had known she would have to leave eventually… but she had always made it sound like she would be taking him with him. He wasn't sure if he was elated that he was free for the time being, or depressed that he had lost his one true companion.

"She's not dead, she'll be back," Ruby stated firmly. In truth, she had no idea how the relationship between Zim and Fuun developed, but the more she thought about it, the more confused she became.

It seemed impossible by nature. A human, even if he was an apex monster, and an Elder Dragon, even if she was the younger sister to a literal God. But somehow, the two had grown attached to one another, and she couldn't help but feel… _jealous?_ the thought ran through her mind.

Was she jealous? How was that possible? But she couldn't help but feel like she had missed out on something great. Or had she? If Fuun was gone… perhaps she still had a chance. She just wasn't sure if she wanted to take it. "I'll be here with you until then," she said softly, trying to comfort him.

He hardly registered her words, just a slow nod. He turned and walked up the stairs to the Great Hall, she followed behind him. She still had questions and she at least wanted to keep her promise, even if he didn't acknowledge it. He didn't turn back to stare at the last place he had seen Fuun, but she did. She glared at Fuun's last known position, a snarl forming on her lips, though she was careful not to make a sound.

 _Progress to Ruby's explosion: 95%_

XXX

 **And that's a wrap! Man, I had fun writing this story. Normally, I would tell you all that I have a final author's note and that I would post that separately to this chapter, but I decided that this note was short enough that I didn't need to do that. Because I don't have much to say about this story. I had started writing it the moment I heard Monster Hunter Generations was going to be released in America, and I put out the first chapter after I had bought the game. And this has been an interesting story, with an even more interesting ending. That's the beauty of a Monster Hunter fic, I could make a cast of characters that were completely OC's and I could do** ** _whatever_** **I wanted with them. So I wrote this story, trying to instill a simple lesson… that all monsters are redeemable (yes, even the human ones). Now, I know that you all are unlikely to think of these things as you play the games, but it was a moral quandary that I had come across while speaking to someone else about the games. And after an intense amount of research and preparation… this story was spawned.**

 **Now, I didn't want to drag this story out. I thought that 20 chapters was plenty and started to divide the ideas in my mind to get to that even 20 number (plus epilogue). That 11k chapter was actually 2 chapter combined, though I don't doubt you all figured that out. Anyways, my point is that I knew I wouldn't be able to actually solve this problem in a mere 20 chapters. Sure, Zim took Dundorma, but the guildmaster is still out there. And this story ended a bit ambiguously. So my single question is… do you all want a sequel? I had written this ending considering the idea of a sequel, but if you all think that this ending speaks for itself and it's better to leave the ending ambiguous, feel free to tell me that.**

 **I just have one last thing to say. I recently put my profile down as a beta. Interestingly, as I have been helping one of you with a story recently (unrelated to Monster Hunter), I'm enjoying helping others writing more than I am actually writing myself. So, if you need (and/or want) help, feel free to send me a PM requesting help and I will do my best to assist you. I can do just about anything, and I'm willing to help with just about anything (not just Monster Hunter). Thank you all for reading, I hope you enjoyed this little story. Vellichor29 signing off.**


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